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SERGEANT BOURGOGNE. 

(From a portrait made in 1830.) 



Frontispiece. 



Memoirs of 
Sergeant Bourgogne 



1812-1813 



Compiled from the Original MS. by Paul Cottin 
ILLUSTRATED 




New York 

Doubleday & McClure Company 

1899 



29568 



Copyright 1899, by 
DOUBLEDAY & McCLURE CO. 



■<»^s.'- of Cv.;;: -^' 







PREFACE 



Adrien Jean Baptiste FRANgois Bourgogne was the 
son of a cloth-merchant of Conde-sur-Escaut (Nord). He 
reached his twentieth year on November 12th, 1805, a 
time when military glory was the one dream of youth. 
To make this dream real, his father procured his admis- 
sion into a corps of the Velites of the Guard, where a fixed 
income was a necessary qualification. 

The Velites were originally Roman soldiers lightly 
armed, for skirmishing with the enemy {velitare). In the 
year XII. when the Revolution was at an end, two corps 
of Velites, consisting of 800 men each, were attached to 
the foot Grenadiers, and to the mounted Grenadiers of the 
Consul's Guard. 

In times of peace each cavalry regiment had attached 
to it a squadron of Velites made up of troops of 125 men 
each, and each infantry regiment a battalion of two com- 
panies of 150 Velites each. The uniform worn by the 
Velites was always that of the corps into which they were 
drafted. 

The Velites were trained first at Saint Germain-en- 
Laye, then at Ecouen and at Fontainebleau. Bourgogne 
attended the writing, arithmetic, drawing, and gymnastic 
classes which were meant to complete the military educa- 



PREFACE 

tion of these f utisre officers ; for, after a few years, the 
more efficient of the Velites were promoted to the rank of 
Sub-Lieutenant. 

After a few months, Bourgogne and his comrades were 
among the troops required for the campaign of 1806 in 
Poland, where Bourgogne became corporal. Two years 
later he took part in the Battle of Essling, where he was 
twice wounded. * From 1809 to 181 r he fought in Aus- 
tria, Spain, and Portugal. In 18 12 he was at Wilna, 
where the Emperor re-assembled his Guard before march- 
ing against the Russians. Bourgogne was now sergeant. 
Already he had travelled a great deal. He had seen 
something of most countries, and he had taken note of 
what he saw wherever he had been. 

How immense would be the value to the intimate his- 
tory of the army under the First Empire, had he but left 
behind really complete memoirs, as foreshadowed in one 
passage of his book ! f The remarkable fragment or por- 
tion now issued raises a great expectation of the comple- 
tion. 

M. de Segur's account of the Russian campaign needs 
no eulogy. In one respect it is lacking. It has not, and 
could not have, the personal accent of the experience that 
has been lived. M. de Segur was on the staff, and had 
not to endure such sufferings as the private soldiers and 
the company officers — the sufferings which we now want 
to know in their minutest details. They make real the 
immense interest of Bourgogne' s memoirs — for he was 
not only a keen observer, he was a man who could see and 
put what he saw in a telling way ; he ranks with the Cap- 

* He was wounded in the neck and leg ; the ball entered the right thigh, 
and could never be extracted. Towards the end of his life it had worked 
down to about twelve inches above the foot. 

f Note here passage in Book 282 in French copy. 

vi 



PREFACE 

tain Coignet revived for us by Lcwedan Larchey. His 
notes are classics in their kind, and have set the example 
of a new sort of military memoirs, that of the simple and 
obscure, who come from the people and represent them in 
the ordinary man. An accurate rendering of their impres- 
sions is likely to be valuable and interesting. 

There is no need for us to insist on the dramatic worth 
of the pictures Bourgogne has drawn. We need only 
mention the orgie in the church at Smolensk, strewn with 
more dead than it held already, the unfortunate men 
stumbling over the snow-covered heaps to reach the sanc- 
tuary, guided by music they believed to be from heaven, 
actually produced by drunken men at the organ ; the organ 
itself half burnt, on the point of crashing down into the 
nave below. All this is unforgettable. 

These Memoirs' are equally valuable for their psychol- 
ogy of the soldier depressed by a succession of reverses. 
The army of 1870 will read their own miseries again. 
Here, too, is the drama of hunger. Where shall we find 
a scene to compare with that of the garrison of Wilna 
flying at the sight of the spectre army, ready to devour 
everything before it .-' Moreover, we cannot help seeing 
that Bourgogne was a kind-hearted man ; his bursts of 
egotism are contrary to his real nature, and are followed 
instantly by remorse. He helped his comrades to the ut- 
most, and risked a great deal so that a prisoner whose father 
had aroused his sympathy might escape. He was deeply 
influenced by the horrors he witnessed. He saw men 
stripped and robbed before the breath was out of their 
bodies ; he saw Croats pull corpses out of the flames and 
devour them ; he saw wounded men left by the roadside 
for want of means of transport, begging for help with out- 
stretched hands, and dragging themselves across snow red- 
dened by their blood, while those who passed by looked 

vii 



PREFACE 

on silently, wondering how soon their turn might come, 
Bourgogne himself fell into a ditch covered with ice near 
the Niemen, and begged for help in vain from the men 
who passed. One old Grenadier came up to him. * I 
have not got any,' he said, raising two stumps to show 
that he had no helping hands to offer. Near the towns, 
where the troops thought their sufferings would come to 
an end, the return of hope made them more pitiful. Their 
tongues were loosed, they inquired for their comrades, 
they carried the sick on their muskets. Bourgogne saw 
soldiers carry their wounded officers on their shoulders for 
miles. Nor must we forget the Hessians, who stood all 
night close round their young Prince in twenty-eight "'^ 
degrees of frost, as a fence protects a young plant. How- 
ever, the effects of fatigue, fever, frost-bite, and badly- 
healed wounds, the undermining of his constitution by an 
attempted poisoning, were more than enough to make our 
sergeant drop behind and lose his regiment, as had hap- 
pened to so many others. 

He advanced, therefore, slowly and painfully quite 
alone, often sinking in the snow up to his shoulders, 
thinking himself lucky if he escaped the Cossacks, and 
found hiding-places in the woods ; finally he recognised 
the road his column had taken by the corpses strewn 
along the way. 

On a pitch-dark night he reached the scene of a battle, 
and in stumbling over heaped-up bodies, found one which 
feebly cried ' Help ! ' He searched and found an old 
friend, Grenadier Picart, a shrewd type of old soldier, and 
a thoroughly good fellow, whose happy nature carried him 
through everything. 

Hearing, however, from a Russian officer that the Em- 
peror and his Guard had all been made prisoners, Picart 

* About 14° below zero, Fahrenheit, 
viii 



PREFACE 

was suddenly seized with a mad fit, presented arms, and 
shouted ' Vive I'Empereur ! ' as if he were being reviewed. 

This fact is most noteworthy, that the soldier, in spite 
of all his sufferings, never accused the sole cause of his 
misfortunes. He remained loyal and devoted, soul and 
body, convinced that Napoleon would know how to save 
the army and take his revenge. It was the soldiers' 
religion. ' Picart, like all the Emperor's old soldiers, 
thought that as soon as they were with him, everything 
would be well, all would succeed; that, in fact, nothing 
was impossible.' Up to a certain point, Bourgogne shared 
this view. And yet, when they returned to France, his 
regiment was reduced to twenty-six men ! 

Their god always moved them deeply. When Picart 
saw him at the crossing of the Berezina, ' wrapped in a 
great fur-lined cloak, a purple velvet cap on his head, and 
a stick in his hand,' he wept, saying, ' Look at our Em- 
peror on foot ! So great as he is, so proud as we always 
were of him ! ' 

At last, in March, 1813, Bourgogne was once more in 
his own country, and promoted (receiving the epaulette of 
a Sub-Lieutenant of the 145th of the Line). He then set 
off again for Prussia. He was wounded at the Battle of 
Dessau (October 12th, 18 13), and made prisoner. 

His leisure hours of captivity were spent in recalling 
his recent experiences and making notes. These, and the 
letters written to his mother, served later to form the 
Memoirs. Also he talked of the past with old comrades, 
a list of whom he has given, and who have added their 
testimony to his. 

On the first return of the Bourbons,* he had sent in 
his resignation on the pretext of helping his parents 

* ' As the Emperor is no longer in France,' he said himself in a note in 
his Memoirs, " I shall throw up my commission.' 

ix 



PREFACE 

to support their numerous family. He married soon 
afterwards. 

Family life has its trials also. Bourgogne lost his 
wife, who left him with two daughters. He married 
again,* and had two more children. 

He had settled down to his father's business, a draper's ; 
but he soon left the shop, and threw himself into an in- 
dustrial enterprise, where he lost most of his money. His 
simple habits, and his naturally cheerful nature, helped 
him through his misfortunes, which did not, however, pre- 
vent his educating his daughters well. He was devoted 
to them, and inspired them with his own love of art ; one 
gave herself up to painting, the other to music. He pos- 
sessed a good voice, and often sang, according to old cus- 
tom, after the family meals. His collection of pictures, 
curiosities, and souvenirs of his campaigns brought many 
visitors to his house. 

When he went to Paris he never neglected to pay a 
visit to his old comrades at the Invalides. Many also in 
his native town met every day at the cafe, and talked of 
old times. On the anniversary of the entrance of the 
French into Moscow they had a dinner, and all drank in 
turn from a cup brought from the Kremlin : these old 
soldiers of the Guard made a religion of the past. 

When the days of 1830 brought the return of the tri- 
color,f Bourgogne thought of returning to the service. 
His family had some influence at Conde, where his brother 
was a doctor. :{: 

* Bourgogne married at Conde on August 31st, 1814, The'rese Fortunee 
Demarez. After her death, in 1822, he married Philippine Godart, a 
native of Tournai. 

f ' In 1830,' he said in the note already quoted 'I shall return to the 
service when the tricolor reappears. ' 

+ Our sergeant had three brothers and a sister, of whom he was the eld- 
est : Fran§ois, Professor of Mathematics at the College of Conde ; Firmin, 



PREFACE 

M. de Vatimesnil, previously Minister of Louis XVIIT. 
and Charles X., and then Deputy for Valenciennes, did all 
he could to support the old soldier of nine campaigns and 
three wounds, and, moreover, neglected by the fallen Gov- 
ernment. He therefore proposed, as legitimate compen- 
sation, his nomination to the post of Major de Place, now 
vacant at Conde. The letter to Marshal Soult, then Min- 
ister of War, was countersigned by the two other Depu- 
ties of the Nord, Brigade and Morel. As M. de Vatimes- 
nil received no answer, he wrote again in a fortnight 
afterwards. 

* This nomination,' he wrote, ' would not only be an 
excellent one from a military point of view, but also from 
a political one. The Chateau of the Hermitage, belong- 
ing to M. le Due de Croy, is one league from Conde, and 
is a meeting-place for malcontents. I do not wish for a 
moment to suggest that they have evil intentions, but 
prudence demands that a fortified place situated near the 
Chateau, and on the extreme frontier, should be confided 
to perfectly trustworthy officers. I can answer for the 
energy of M. Bourgogne,' 

Failing the post, he asked for the Cross of the Legion 
of Honor for his protege. But Bourgogne was entirely 
forgotten at the offices of the Ministry, and all traces of 
his services seemed to have disappeared. M. de Vatimes- 
nil was now obliged to compile a set of papers, which he 
sent in on September 24th. Two months afterwards, on 
November lOth, the former Velite was at last appointed 
Lieutenant-Adjutant de Place, but at Brest instead of 
Conde. That was far off indeed ; but, at the same time, 
it was one rung up the ladder, and on March 21st, 183 1, 

died young ; Florence, married to a brewer ; Louis Florent, Doctor of 
Medicine of the Faculty of Paris, died in 1870. Marie Fran^oise Monnier, 
their mother, was born at Conde in 1764. 

xi 



PREFACE : 

the Cross came to give him patience. New efforts were 
now made to obtain the post of Adjutant de Place at Valen- 
ciennes, and his wish was at last fulfilled on July 25th, 1832. 
They remember at Valenciennes to this day the services 
he performed there, especially during the troubles of 1848. 
He retired on a pension of twelve hundred francs in 1853.* 

He died, an octogenarian, on April 15 th, 1867, two 
years after the famous Coignet, who lived to be ninety 
years old. The terrible hardships they had gone through 
had not the effect of shortening their lives. But a man 
had to be exceptionally strong to survive them. Unhap- 
pily his last days were clouded by physical suffering, but 
neither his good temper nor the philosophy of his charac- 
ter was spoiled by it. Mme. Bussiere, one of his nieces, 
came after the death of his second wife to take care of 
him, and, by her devoted care, to give him all the relief 
possible. 

Two portraits of our hero are given here. One is the 
facsimile of a drawing by Alphonse Chigot ; it is Bour- 
gogne in profile, dressed in ordinary clothes, at the time 
of his leaving the service; the frontispiece, an earlier 
lithograph, shows him at the age of forty-five, with the 
stern official air and hard glance of an Adjutant-in-charge, 
a living personification of command. What we know, 
however, of his natural kindness shows us the truth of 
the poet's precept : 

' Garde-toi, tant que tu vivra, 
De juger les gens sur la mine ! ' 

Let us add that in his youth he was called a handsome 
soldier; his height and military carriage were impres- 
sive, f We have made no alteration in the text other than 

* We found M. de Vatimesnil's letters in the military portfolio of Bour- 
gogne, in the War Archives. 

f We give here a list, copied from the Memoirs, of the important battles 

xii 



PREFACE 

to correct mistakes of spelling and the suppression of un- 
necessary words. Less scruple was shown in a paper — 
now out of print {L'Echo de la Frontikre) — which in 1857 
published a part of the Memoirs of Bourgogne, and cor- 
rected them so effectually that all the original flavor had 
vanished. 

The collection of V £cho de la Fronti^re is very rare. 
The only copy I know of is in the library at Valenciennes. 
The Bourgogne paper was torn away from it, and we have 
only found two copies, one at the National Library, the 
other in the library of M. le Baron Olivier de Watteville. 
These contain only part of the text published by the 
paper, and do not go further than p. 176 of the present 
volume. V &cho de la Fronticre takes the reader to p. 
286. We have therefore treated these Memoirs as having 
the value of an unpublished work up to their publication 
in 1896 in our Nouvelle Revue Retrospective.^ 

We must acknowledge with gratitude our indebtedness 
to M. Maurice Renault, keeper of the records at Valen- 
ciennes, for having communicated to us the original manu- 
script, now preserved in the town library. He did far 
more, by copying with his own hand the 616 pages in 
folio of the manuscript, thus guaranteeing the accuracy of 
the copy. 

We also express our thanks to M. Auguste Molinier, 
whose original idea it was to offer the publication of the 
manuscript to the Nouvelle Revue Retrospective, and to M. 
Ed. Martel, who made inquiries as to the Bourgogne fam- 

in which Bourgogne took part : Jena, Pultusk, Eylau, Eilsberg, Friedland, 
Essling, Wagram, Sorno-Sierra, Benevent, Smolensk, La Moskowa, 
Krasnoe, La Berezina, Lutzen, and Bautzen. 'I may add,' he said, 
' more than twenty small encounters and other skirmishes.' 

* Bourgogne's Memoirs appeared for the first time in extenso in our 
Nouvelle Revue Retrospective y which for the last fourteen years has been 
devoted to the publication of documents on our national history. 

xiii 



PREFACE 

ily at Valenciennes and Conde, We must also mention 
our hero's nephews, M. le Docteur Bourgogne and M. 
Amadee Bourgogne, M. Loriaux — his former landlord — 
and M. Paul Marmottau, who have given us valuable 
assistance in our work. 

Paul Cottin. 

December i^th, 1896. 



CONTENTS 

VAGS 

PREFACE .----« Vii 

CHAPTER I. 

FROM ALMEIDA TO MOSCOW . . . ■ I 

CHAPTER n. 

THE FIRE AT MOSCOW - - - - ' I^ 

CHAPTER HI. 

THE RETREAT — REVIEW OF MY KNAPSACK — THE EMPEROR 

IN DANGER — FROM MOJAISK TO SLAWKOWO - - 55 

CHAPTER IV. 

DOROGOBOUI — VERMIN — A CANTINlfeRE — HUNGER - - 65 

CHAPTER V. 

A DISASTER — A FAMILY DRAMA — MARSHAL MORTIER 

TWENTY -SEVEN DEGREES OF FROST — WE REACH 
SMOLENSK — A DEN OF THIEVES - - "74 

CHAPTER VI. 

A DISTURBED NIGHT — I FIND MY FRIENDS AGAIN — WE 
LEAVE SMOLENSK — A NECESSARY CORRECTION — THE 
BATTLE OF KRASNOE — MELL1E THE DRAGOON - 93 

XV 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTER VII. 



CHAPTER XI. 



PAGE 



THE RETREAT GOES ON — I TAKE A WIFE — DISCOURAGE- 
MENT — I LOSE SIGHT OF MY COMRADES DRAMATIC 

SCENE — MEETING WITH PICART - - - 122 

CHAPTER VIII. 

I TRAVEL WITH PICART — THE COSSACKS — PICART IS 

WOUNDED — A CONVOY OF FRENCH PRISONERS A 

HALT IN A FOREST — POLISH HOSPITALITY — AN ATTACK 
OF INSANITY — WE REJOIN THE ARMY — THE EMPEROR 
AND THE SACRED BATTALION — THE CROSSING OF THE 
B]feR]feziNA ---.-. 142 

CHAPTER IX. 

FROM THE b6r:^ZINA TO WILNA — THE JEWS - - 207 

CHAPTER X. 

FROM WILNA TO KOWNO — THE REGIMENTAL DOG — 

MARSHAL NEY — THE TREASURY OF THE ARMY 1 

AM POISONED — THE THIEVES' DRIPPING — THE OLD 

GRENADIER, FALOPPA GENERAL ROGUET FROM 

KOWNO TO ELBING TWO CANTINIERES THE ADVEN- 
TURES OF A SERGEANT — I FIND PICART AGAIN — THE 

SLEDGE AND THE JEWS — A SHREW — EYLAU ARRIVAL 

AT ELBING - - . . . 



229 



OUR STAY AT ELBING — MADAME GENTIL — AN UNCLE'S 
HEIR — JANUARY 1ST, 1813 — PICART AND THE 
PRUSSIANS — FATHER ELLIOT — MY WITNESSES - 329 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



PAGE 

Sergeant Bourgogne in 1830, ..... Frontispiece 
The French Receiving Hospitality from Russian Women, . 50 

The Bridge over the Kolotscha near Borodino, September 

17, 1812, 90 

On the High Road from Mojaiska to Krvmskoie, September 

18, 1812, 130 

Bivouac near Mikalev^^ka, November 7, 1812, . . . 170 

On the Road between Braunsberg and Elbing, December 21, 

1812, 21Q 

Passage of the Berezina, November, 1812, .... 250 

Beside the Road, not far from Pn6wa, November 8, 1812, . 300 



MEMOIRS OF 
SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 



CHAPTER I. 

FROM ALMEIDA TO MOSCOW. 

It was in the month of March, 1812, while we were 
engaged against the Enghsh army commanded by 
Welhngton, at Almeida in Portugal, that we received 
orders to march for Russia. 

We crossed Spain, each day being marked by an 
engagement, sometimes by two; and in this way reached 
Bayonne, the first town over the frontier in France. 

On leaving this place, we travelled by the stage as far 
as Paris, where we expected to stay and rest ; but after a 
halt of forty-eight hours, the Emperor reviewed us, and, 
deciding that we were not in need of rest, marched us all 
along the boulevards. Then we turned to the left in the 
Rue St. Martin, crossed La Villette, and found several 
hundred coaches and other vehicles waiting for us ; we 
halted, but were ordered to mount four into every carriage 
— and, crack ! we were off to Meaux. From there onwards 
to the Rhine in waggons, travelling day and night. 

We stayed at Mayence, and then crossed the Rhine, 
afterwards passing on foot through the grand-duchy of 
Frankfort,* Franconia, Saxony, Prussia, and Poland. We 
crossed the Vistula at Marienwerder, entered Pomerania, 

* Frankfort had been raised to a grand-duchy by Napoleon in 1806, 
in favour of the Elector of Mayence. 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

and on the morning of June 25, a beautiful day (not, as 
M, de Segur said, in bad weather), we passed over the 
Niemen by our pontoons, and entered Lithuania, the 
first province in Russia, 

On the next day we left our first position, and marched 
until the 29th, without anything noteworthy happening ; 
but during the night of the 29th and 30th we heard a 
rumbling noise — it was thunder accompanied by a furious 
wind. Masses of clouds gathered over our heads, and 
broke. The thunder and the wind lasted for more than 
two hours, and in a few minutes our fires were put out, 
our shelter torn away, our piled arms thrown down. 
We were lost, and did not know which way to turn. I 
ran to take shelter in the direction of the village where the 
General was lodged, but I had only the lightning to guide 
me — suddenly, in one of the flashes, I thought I saw a 
road (it was unfortunately a canal, swollen by the rain to 
the level of the ground). Expecting to find solid earth 
under my feet, I plunged in and sank. On rising to the 
surface I swam to the other bank, and at last reached the 
village. I walked into the first house I saw, and entered 
a room filled by about twenty men, officers, and servants, 
all asleep. I took possession of a bench placed near a 
large warm stove, and, undressing, wrung the water out of 
my shirt and other clothes, huddling myself up on the 
bench till they were dry ; when daylight came, I dressed 
as well as I could, and left the house to look for my weapons 
and knapsack, which I found scattered in the mud. 

On the 30th, a beautiful sun dried everything, and the 
same day we reached Wilna, the capital of Lithuania, 
where the Emperor had arrived the day before, with some 
of the Guard. 

While we were there, I received a letter from my 
mother, enclosing another addressed to M. Constant, the 



FROM ALMEIDA TO MOSCOW 

Emperor's chief valet, who came from Peruwelz* in 
Belgium. This letter was from his mother, an acquaint- 
ance of my mother's. I went to the Emperor's lodging to 
deliver the letter, but only saw Roustan, the Emperor's 
mameluke, who told me that M. Constant had gone out 
with His Majesty. He invited me to wait till he returned, 
but, as I was on duty, I could not do so. I gave him the 
letter, and decided to come back and see M. Constant 
another time. But the next day, July i6, we left the 
town, at ten o'clock in the evening, going towards 
Borisow, and on the 27th we reached Witebsk, where we 
encountered Russians. We took up our position on a 
height above the town. The enemy occupied hills to 
right and left. 

The cavalry, commanded by Murat, had already made 
several charges. Just as we arrived we saw 200 Voltigeurs 
of the 9th Regiment, who had ventured too far, met by 
a portion of the Russian cavalry, which had just been 
repulsed. Unless help arrived speedily to our men, they 
were lost, as the river and some deep gullies made access 
to them very difficult. But they were commanded by 
gallant officers, who swore, as did also the men, to kill 
themselves rather than not come honourably out of it. 
Fighting as they went, they reached a piece of favourable 
ground. They formed a square, and having been under 
fire before, their nerves were not shaken by the number of 
the enemy. They were quite surrounded, however, by a 
regiment of Lancers and other horse trying in vain to cut 
through them, and soon they had a rampart of killed and 
wounded all round them, both of men and horses. This 
formed another obstacle for the Russians, who, terrified, 
fled in disorder, amid cries of joy from the whole army. 

* A large Belgian town, seven kilometres from Condd ; a favourite 
excursion, on account of the pilgrimage of Bonsecours. 

3 B— 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

Our men came back again quietly, as conquerors, every 
now and then stopping to face the enemy. The Emperor 
at once sent for the most distinguished, and decorated 
them with the order of the Legion of Honour. From a 
height opposite to ours, the Russians had, Hke us, seen 
the engagement and flight of their cavalry. 

After this brush we made our bivouacs, and directly 
afterwards I had a visit from twelve young men from my 
own country (Conde) ; ten of them were drummers, one 
a drum-major, and the twelfth was a corporal of Voltigeurs. 
They all wore side-arms. I told them how much pleasure 
it gave me to see them, and said I was sorry I had 
nothing to offer them. The drum-major said : 

' Mon pays, we did not come for that, but to beg you to 
come with us and share what we have, wine, gin, and 
other things very good for you. We took them yesterday 
evening from the Russian General. There was a little cart 
holding his kitchen and everything belonging to it. We 
have put it all into the canteen cart, with Florencia our 
cantiniere — she is a pretty Spaniard. She might be taken 
for my wife : I protect her — honourably, I can tell you 1' 
As he said this, he struck the hilt of his long rapier. ' She 
is a good woman : ask the others — no one dares say any- 
thing else. She had a fancy for a sergeant, who was to 
have married her ; but he was murdered by a Spaniard 
from Bilbao, and until she has chosen someone else she 
must be taken care of. Well, then, jnon pays, it is settled : 
you — you'll come with us. If there's enough for three, 
there's enough for four. Come, right about ! march !" 
And we set off towards their army corps, which formed 
the advance guard. 

Well, we got to the camp of the natives of Conde. 
There were four guests — two dragoons, Melle, who was 
from Conde, Flament from Peruwelz, and Grangier, a 

4 



FROM ALMEIDA TO MOSCOW 

non-commissioned officer in the same regiment as myself. 
We sat down near the cantiniere's cart. She really was 
a very pretty Spaniard, and she was overjoyed to see us, 
as we had just come from her own country, and could 
speak her language pretty well — the dragoon Flament best 
of all — so we spent the night in drinking the Russian 
General's wine and talking of our country. 

Day was just breaking, when a sound of artillery put a 
stop to our talking. We went back to our own quarters, 
hoping to meet again. 

The poor fellows little thought that in a few days 
eleven of them would not be alive. 

This was the 28th. We expected to fight, but the 
Russian army retreated, and the same day we got to 
Witebsk, where we stayed a fortnight. Our regiment 
occupied one of the faubourgs of the town. 

I was quartered with a Jew, who had a pretty wife and 
two charming daughters with lovely oval faces. In this 
house I found a little vat for making beer, some barley, and a 
hand-mill for grinding, but no hops. I gave the Jew twelve 
francs to get some, and for fear he might not return we kept 
Rachel his wife and his two daughters as hostages. How- 
ever twenty-four hours after his departure Jacob the Jew 
returned with the hops. In our company was a brewer, 
a Fleming, who made us five barrels of excellent beer. 

On August 13, when we left the town, we still had two 
barrels of beer left ; we put them under the care of Mother 
Dubois, our cantiniere. The happy idea then occurred to 
her of staying behind and of selling the beer for her own 
profit to the men who were following us, while we, in the 
sweltering heat, were nearly dead of thirst. 

Early on the morning of the i6th we arrived before 
Smolensk, The enemy had just retired there, and we 
took up our position on the Champ Sacr6, so called by the 

5 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

natives of the place. This town is surrounded by very 

strong walls, and old towers, half made of wood. The 

Boristhene (Dnieper) runs on one side of the town. The 

siege was begun at once and a breach made, and on the 

morning of the 17th, when we were preparing to make an 

assault, to our surprise we found the town evacuated. 

The Russians were retreating, but they had demolished 

the bridge, and from a height which commanded the town 

they rained down bombs and shot on us. 

During that day of the siege I, with one of my friends, 

was stationed at the outposts whence batteries were 

playing on the town. Marshal Davoust commanded this 

position. Recognising us as belonging to the Guard, he 

came to us and asked where the Imperial Guard was. 

Directly afterwards he was told that the Russians had left 

the town, and were advancing in our direction. He 

immediately ordered a battalion of Light Infantry to take 

the advanced position, saying to the officer in command, 

' If the enemy advances you will drive them back.' I 

remember an old officer of this battalion, as he went 

forward, singing Roland's song : 

' Combien sont-ils ? Combien sont-ils ? 
C'est le cri du soldat sans gloire I'* 

Five minutes afterwards they advanced with the bayonet 
on the Russian column, and forced it to re-enter the town. 

As we returned to our own camp, we were very nearly 
killed by a shell ; another fell on a barn inhabited by 
Marshal Mortier, and set it on lire. I recognised among 

* ' Combien sont-ils ? Combien sont-ils ? 
Quel homme ennemi de sa gloire 
Pent demander ! Combien sont-ils ? 
Eh ! demande ou sont les perils, 
C'est la qu'est aussi la victoire !' 

These are the exact words of the third verse of * Roland a Roncevaux,' 
a song (words and music) by Rouget de L'Isle. 

6 



FROM ALMEIDA TO MOSCOW 

the men who brought water to extinguish the fire a young 
soldier from my own country ; he was in a regiment of 
the Young Guard.* 

While we stayed outside the town, I visited the 
cathedral, where a large number of the inhabitants had 
taken refuge, their houses having been destroyed. 

On the 2 1st we left, and the same day we crossed the 
Valoutina plain, where two days before a terrible en- 
counter had taken place, and the brave General Gudin 
had been killed. 

We continued to advance, and by forced marches 
arrived at a town called Dorogoboui. We left on the 
24th, following up the Russians as far as Viazma, which 
was already in flames, and found there some brandy and 
a little food. We went on to Ghjal, which we reached on 
September ist ; there we stayed until the 4th, when we went 
forward again, and on the 5th met the Russian army in 
position. The 6ist captured their first redoubt. 

We got ready on the 6th for the great battle on the 
next day ; some cleaned muskets and other weapons, 
others made bandages for the wounded, some made their 
wills, and others, again, sang or slept in perfect indifference. 
The whole of the Imperial Guard received orders to 
appear in full uniform. 

At five o'clock on the morning of the next day we were 
under arms. The Emperor passed near us while he 
reviewed the whole line ; he had been mounted for more 
than half an hour. 

The battle began at seven o'clock. I cannot describe 
it in detail, but the whole army was overjoyed to hear the 
roar of the artillery, feeling certain that this time the 
Russians had not decamped, and that we should come 
face to face with them. The evening before, and for part 

* Dumoulin, died of fever at Moscow. — Author's Note. 
7 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

of the night, a fine cold rain had fallen, hut on this great 
day the weather was magnificent. This, like all our great 
battles, was won by the artillery, which fired 120,000 
rounds. The Russians lost at least 50,000 men, either 
killed or wounded. Our loss was 17,000 men ; forty-three 
Generals disabled, eight of whom, to my knowledge, were 
killed on the spot. These were : Montbrun, Huard, 
Caulaincourt (the brother of the Emperor's equerry), 
Compere Maison, Plauzonne, Lepel, and Anabert. This 
last was Colonel of a regiment of foot chasseurs. Each 
moment a message was sent to the Emperor, ' Sire, such 
and such a General is killed or wounded/ and his place had 
to be filled on the spot. This was how Colonel Anabert 
was made General. I remember it very well, for I was 
close to the Emperor at the time. His words were : 

' Colonel, I appoint you General ; lead the division 
which is in front of the great redoubt, and take it.' 

The General galloped off, with his adjutant-major fol- 
lowing him as his aide-de-camp. A quarter of an hour 
afterwards the aide-de-camp returned, and announced to 
the Emperor that the redoubt was taken, but that the 
General was wounded. Eight days afterwards he died, 
along with several others. I heard that the Russians 
lost fifty Generals, either killed or wounded. While the 
fighting lasted, we were placed in reserve, behind General 
Miaut's division ; balls fell all amongst our ranks, and 
round the Emperor. 

The battle ended with the day, and we remained on the 
field all night, and all the next day (the 8th). I spent 
that day in walking over the field — a sad and terrible 
spectacle. Grangier was with me, and we went as far as 
the ravine, the position so hotly disputed during the 
battle. Murat had ordered his tents to be pitched there. 
Just as we arrived we saw him superintend the amputa- 



FROM ALMEIDA TO MOSCOW 

tion by his own surgeon of the legs of two gunners of the 
Imperial Russian Guard. When the operation was over, 
he gave them each a glass of wine. Afterwards he walked 
on the edge of the ravine, examining the plain which lies 
on the other side, fringed by a wood. There, on the pre- 
ceding day, he had made more than one Muscovite bite 
the dust while he and his cavalry charged the retreating 
enemy. He was splendid to look at — so distinguished by 
his gallantry, his cool courage, and his handsome appear- 
ance — giving his orders to those under his command, and 
raining blows on his enemies. He was easily picked out 
by his cap, his white aigrette, and his floating cloak. 

On the morning of the gth we left the battlefield, and 
during the day reached Mojaisk. The Russian rear-guard 
was on a height the opposite side of the town from that 
occupied by us. A company of Voltigeurs and Grenadiers, 
with more than a hundred men of the 33rd, making part 
of the advance-guard, ascended the hill without troubling 
themselves about the number of the enemy waiting for 
them. A part of the army, still in the town, watched 
them astonished, as several squadrons of Cuirassiers and 
Cossacks advanced and surrounded the Voltigeurs and 
Grenadiers. But, as if they had foreseen all that, they 
quietly reunited, formed into platoons, then in a square, 
and fired from all four sides on the Russians surrounding 
them. 

We gave them up for lost, knowing the distance sepa- 
rating us from them, and no help being possible. A 
Russian superior officer went up to them, telling them to 
surrender ; the officer in command of the French answered 
him by killing him. Upon this the cavalry, terrified, ran 
away and left our men masters of the field.* 

* One of my friends, a Vdlite Captain Sabatier, commanded the 
Voltigeurs. — Author s Note. 

9 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

On the loth we followed the enemy until the evening; 
and when we stopped I was put in command of a guard 
near a chateau where the Emperor lodged. I had just 
placed my men on a road leading to the chateau, when a 
Polish servant, whose master was on the Emperor's staff, 
passed near us, leading a horse laden with baggage. The 
horse was worn out, sank down, and refused to get up 
again. The servant took the baggage and went off. He 
had hardly left us when the men, who were hungry, killed 
the horse, so that all night we were busy eating it and 
cooking for the next day. 

Soon afterwards the Emperor passed on foot, accom- 
panied by Murat and a member of the Conseil d'Etat, on 
their way to the highroad. I made my sentries present 
arms. The Emperor stopped in front of us, and near the 
horse, which filled up the road. He asked me if we were 
eating it, 

I replied, ' Yes.' 

He smiled and said, ' Patience ! In four days v/e shall 
be at Moscow, where you will have rest and proper food — 
however good that horse may be.' 

His prediction was fulfilled, for four days afterwards we 
arrived at that city. 

The next day (the nth) and following days we marched 
in beautiful weather. On the 13th we slept at a place 
near a beautiful abbey, and several other fine buildings. 
We could see that we were approaching a great capital. 

On the 14th we set out very early ; we passed near a 
ravine where the Russians had begun to make redoubts 
for defence, and directly afterwards we entered a great 
forest of pines and birches, where we found a beautiful 
road. Now we were quite near Moscow. 

On that day I was with an advance guard of fifteen 
men. After marching for an hour, the Imperial column 



FROM ALMEIDA TO MOSCOW 

halted, and just then I saw a linesman with his left arm 
in a sling. He was leaning on his musket, and seemed 
to be waiting for someone. I recognised him at once as 
one of the Conde men who had been to see me at Witebsk. 
He was there hoping to meet me. I went up to him, and 
asked him after his friends. 

'They are well,' he answered, striking the ground with 
the butt-end of his musket. ' They all died on the field of 
honour, as they say, and were buried in the great redoubt. 
They were killed by round shot. Ah, sergeant,' he went 
on, ' never shall I forget that battle — what slaughter !' 

' And you,' I said — 'what is the matter with you ?' 

' Ah, bah ! nothing. A ball between the elbow and 
shoulder. Sit down for a minute, and let us talk of our 
poor comrades and the young Spaniard, our cantiniere.' 

This is what he told me : 

* We had been fighting since seven in the morning, when 
General Campans, who commanded us, was wounded. 
The officer who took his place was wounded also, and 
then the third. A fourth came. This one from the Guard. 
Directly he took command, he ordered the drums to sound 
the charge. That was how our regiment (the 6ist) was 
destroyed by grapeshot — that was how our friends were 
killed, the redoubt taken, and the General wounded. It 
was General Anabert. During the action I got a ball in 
the arm, without knowing it at the time. 

* Soon afterwards my wound began to pain me, and I 
went to the ambulance to have the ball extracted. I had 
not gone many steps before I met the young Spaniard, 
our cantinieve ; she was in tears. Some men had told 
her that nearly all the drummers of the regiment were 
killed or wounded. She said she wanted to see them, to 
help them if she could ; so, in spite of the pain I suffered 
from my wound, I determined to accompany her. We 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

walked in the midst of wounded men ; some moved 
painfully and with difficulty, and others were carried 
on litters. 

' When we got near the great redoubt and that field of 
carnage, she uttered heart-rending cries. But when she 
caught sight of all the broken drums of the regiment strew- 
ing the ground, she became like a madwoman. " Here, 
my friend, here!" she cried; "they are here!" And so 
they were, lying with broken limbs, their bodies torn by 
shot. Mad with grief, she went from one to the other, 
speaking softly to them ; but none of them heard. Some, 
however, still gave signs of life, one of them being the 
drum-major, whom she called her father. She stopped 
by him, and, falling on her knees, she raised his head and 
poured a few drops of brandy between his lips. Just at 
that moment the Russians made an effort \o retake 
the redoubt, and the firing and cannonade began again. 
Suddenly the Spaniard cried with pain ; she had been 
struck by a ball in her left hand, which crushed her 
thumb and entered the shoulder of the dying man she 
held. She fell unconscious. Seeing her danger, I tried 
to raise her, and take her to the baggage and ambulance 
waggons. But with only one arm I had not strength 
enough. Happ'ly, a Cuirassier passed on foot close td us. 
He did not need asking; he only said, " Quick ! we must 
hurry; this is not a pleasant place." In fact, the bullets 
were whistling round us. Without more ado he lifted the 
young Spaniard and carried her like a child. She still 
remained unconscious. After walking for ten minutes, we 
got to a little wood where there was an ambulance of the 
Guard Artillery. Here Florencia came to her senses. 

' M. Larrey, the Emperor's surgeon, amputated her 
thumb, and extracted the ball from my arm very cleverly, 
and now I feel all right again.' 

12 



FROM ALMEIDA TO MOSCOW 

This is what I heard from Dumont, the man from 
Conde, corporal of the Voltigeurs of the 6ist. I made 
him promise to come to see me at Moscow, if we stayed 
there ; but I never heard of him again. 

Thus perished twelve young men from Conde in the 
famous Battle of Moskowa, September 7th, 1812. 

End of the abstract of our march from Portugal to 
Moscow. 

BOURGOGNE,* 

Ex-Grenadier of the Imperial Guards Chevalier 
of the Legion d' Honneur. 

* Bourgogne's signature at the end of this chapter shows that he 
considered it as a kind of introduction. 



13 



CHAPTER II. 

TlJE FIRE AT MOSCOW. 

At one o'clock in the afternoon of September 14th, after 
passing through a great forest, we saw a hill some way off, 
and half an hour afterwards part of the army reached the 
highest point, signalling to us who were behind, and 
shouting 'Moscow! Moscow!' It was indeed the great 
city ; there we should rest after all our labours, for we 
of the Imperial Guard had marched more than twelve 
hundred leagues without resting. 

It was a beautiful summer's day ; the sun was reflected 
on all the domes, spires, and gilded palaces. Many 
capitals I have seen — such as Paris, Berlin, Warsaw, 
Vienna, and Madrid — had only produced an ordinary 
impression on me. But this was quite different ; the 
effect was to me — in fact, to everyone — magical. 

At that sight troubles, dangers, fatigues, privations were 
all forgotten, and the pleasure of entering Moscow absorbed 
all our minds. To take up good quarters for the winter, 
and to make conquests of another nature — such is the 
French soldier's character: from war to love, and from 
love to war ! While we were gazing at the city, the order 
was given to appear in full uniform. 

On that day I was in the advance-guard with fifteen 

14 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

men, and I had under my charge several officers taken 
prisoner in the great battle of the Moskowa, some of 
whom spoke French. Amongst them was a pope (a 
priest of the Greek Church), probably chaplain of a 
regiment. He, too, spoke French very well, but he 
seemed much sadder and more preoccupied than his com- 
panions in misfortune. I noticed that, when they arrived 
at the hill where we were stationed, all the prisoners 
bowed and crossed themselves several times. I went to 
the priest and asked him the reason. 

' Monsieur,' he said, ' this hill is called the Mont du 
Salut, and every good Muscovite on seeing the holy city 
must bow and cross himself.' 

Soon afterwards we descended the Mont du Salut, and 
after a quarter of an hour's march we found ourselves at 
the gate of the town. 

The Emperor was there already with his staff. We 
halted, and I noticed to our left an immense cemetery. 
After waiting a moment. Marshal Duroc came out of the 
town, which he had just entered, and, addressing the 
Emperor, presented to him several of the inhabitants who 
could speak French. The Emperor questioned them ; 
then the Marshal told His Majesty that in the Kremlin 
there were a great number of persons under arms, the 
greater part of whom were criminals released from the 
prisons ; they had been firing at Murat's cavalry, who 
formed the advance-guard. In spite of several orders, 
they persisted in keeping their doors closed. 

'These wretches,' said the Marshal, 'are all drunk, and 
cannot listen to reason.' 

' Open the doors with cannon,' replied the Emperor, 
' and drive out all you find behind them.' 

The thing was done already — Murat had undertaken it 
himself: two cannon-shots, and all the riff-raff was dis- 

15 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

persed through the town. Then Murat continued his 
progress, pressing hard on the Russian rear-guard. 

The order ' Garde-a-vous !' was now given, preceded by 
a rolling of drums from the Guard, the signal for entering 
the town. It was three o'clock in the afternoon, and we 
made our entrance marching in close columns, the bands 
playing in front. I was in the advance guard of thirty 
men, commanded by M. Cesarisse, the Lieutenant of our 
company. 

We had hardly entered the outskirts of the town, when 
we met several of the miserable creatures expelled from 
the Kremlin ; they had all horrible faces, and were armed 
with muskets, staves, and pitchforks. In passing over the 
bridge leading from the suburbs to the town itself, a man 
crept from underneath the bridge, and placed himself in 
front of the regiment. He was muffled up in a sheepskin 
cape, long gray hair fell on his shoulders, and a thick white 
beard came down to his waist. He carried a three-pronged 
fork, and looked like Neptune rising from the sea. In these 
accoutrements he walked proudly up to the drum-major, 
moving as if to strike him, no doubt taking him for the 
General with his smart uniform and gold lace. He aimed 
a blow at him with his pitchfork, which luckily the drum- 
major managed to avoid, and, snatching the miserable 
creature's weapon from him, he seized him by the shoulders ; 
then, kicking him behind, he launched him over the bridge 
and into the water he had just left. He did not get out 
again, however; swept away by the current, we only 
saw him come up at intervals. Finally he disappeared 
altogether. 

We met several others of the same kind, who fired at us 
with loaded arms. There were even some of them who 
had nothing but wooden flint-locks to their muskets; as 
they wounded no one, we contented ourselves with taking 

i6 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

their arms from them and breaking them, and if the 
creatures returned we got rid of them by blows in the 
back with the butt-end of our muskets. Some of these 
weapons had been taken from the arsenal at the Kremlin ; 
the muskets with the wooden flint-locks certainly came 
from that place. 

We knew that these wretches had tried to stab an officer 
of Murat's staff. 

After passing over the bridge, we marched along a large 
and beautiful street. We were astonished not to see any- 
one come out — not even a lady — to listen to our band 
playing * La victoire est a nous.' We could not understand 
this total silence, and we imagined that the inhabitants, 
not daring to show themselves, were peeping at us from 
behind their shutters. Here and there we saw a few 
servants in livery, and some Russian soldiers. 

After marching for about an hour, we got to the first 
enclosure of the Kremlin. Turning sharp to the left, we 
entered a larger and finer street than the one we had left, 
leading to the Place du Gouvernement. Just as we stopped, 
we saw three ladies at a ground-floor window. I happened 
to be on the pavement, and near one of the ladies, who 
gave me a piece of bread as black as a coal, and full of 
long pieces of straw. I thanked her, and in return gave 
her a bit of white bread, which I had just got from Mother 
Dubois, our cantiniere. The lady blushed, and I laughed ; 
then she touched my arm — I cannot tell why — and I went 
on my way. 

At last we arrived on the Place du Gouvernement. We 
massed ourselves together opposite the palace of Rostop- 
chin, the Governor of the town, who ordered it to be 
fired. We were told that the regiment was to camp, and 
that no one on any pretence whatever was to absent 
himself. An hour afterwards, however, the whole place 

17 c 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

was filled with everything we could want — wines of all 
kinds, liqueurs, preserved fruits, and an enormous quantity 
of sweet cakes and flour, but no bread. We went into the 
houses on the Place asking for food and drink, but as we 
found no one in them we helped ourselves. 

We had placed one guard under the principal entrance 
to the palace. On the right was a room large enough to 
hold all the men of the guard, and a few Russian officers — 
prisoners who had been found in the town. We had left 
the others by order at the gates of the town. 

The Governor's palace is large, and its construction 
quite European. Opposite the entrance are two beautiful 
staircases, which unite on the first floor. On this story is 
a large drawing-room, containing an oval table and a very 
large painting of Alexander, Emperor of Russia, on horse- 
back. Behind the palace is a large courtyard surrounded 
by servants' oflices. 

The fire began an hour after our arrival. On our right 
we saw a thick smoke, then a whirl of flames, not knowing 
from whence it came. We were told the fire was in the 
bazaar, the merchants' quarter. 

'They are probably freebooters,' we were told, 'who 
have carelessly set fire to the shops in searching for 
provisions.' 

Many people who were not in the campaign have said 
that it was the fire at Moscow that ruined the army. I, 
and many others with me, think just the contrary. The 
Russians need not have set fire to the town ; they might 
have thrown all the provisions into the Moskowa, and 
wasted the country for ten leagues round — an easy thing 
to do, as part of the country is a desert already. Had 
this been done, we should have had to leave in a fortnight. 
After the fire there were still houses enough left to shelter 
the army, and, even supposing all the houses had been 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

burnt, there were the cellars remaining. At seven o'clock 
the fire reached the back of the Governor's palace. The 
Colonel gave orders that a patrol of fifteen men should 
leave at once. I was among them. M. Cesarisse came 
with us, and took command. We went in the direction 
of the fire, but we had hardly gone three hundred steps 
before we heard some firing on our right. We did not 
pay much attention, thinking it was only a few drunken 
soldiers ; but fifty steps further we heard it again. It came 
from a sort of blind alley, and was directed at us. At the 
same moment I heard the cry of a wounded man close to 
me. He had a ball in the leg; but the wound was not 
dangerous, as he could still walk. We had orders to go 
back at once to our regiment ; but we had hardly turned 
round, when more firing from the same quarter changed 
our direction again. We advanced to the house where 
the firing came from ; we beat in the door, and came face 
to face with nine great rogues, armed with lances and 
muskets to prevent an entrance. 

Then we fought in the yard, the numbers unequal. We 
were nineteen against nine ; but, believing there were more 
of them, we had started by knockmg down the three first. 
A corporal was wounded between his shoulder-belts and 
his coat ; feeling nothing, he seized his adversary's lance, 
which placed him at a disadvantage, as he had only 
one hand free, having to hold his musket with the other. 
He was thrown violently back against the cellar door, still 
holding the lance fast. At that moment the Russian fell 
wounded by a bayonet. The officer had just wounded 
another in the wrist with his sword to make him drop his 
lance ; but, as he still held firm, he was struck by a ball 
in the side, sending him to the shades. While this was 
going on, I with five men held the remaining four (for 
three had run away) so closely against a wall that they could 

19 c — 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

not use their lances. At the first movement they made, 
we could run them through with our bayonets held against 
their breasts. •• They kept striking their weapons with their 
fists out of bravado. These unfortunate fellows were drunk 
with the brandy they had found in quantities, so that they 
were like madmen. We were obliged at last to finish 
them off. 

We hurried into the house, and in one room we found 
two or three of the men who had made off. They were 
so frightened when they saw us that they had no time to 
seize their firearms, upon which we fell at once ; while we 
were doing so, they jumped from the balcony. 

As we had only found two men, and there were three 
muskets, we searched for the third, who was under the 
bed, and came out without being told, crying, ' Bojo ! 
Bojo !' which means, ' My God ! my God !' We did 
nothing to him, but kept him by us as a guide. Like the 
others, he was frightful and loathsome — hke them, a 
convict clothed in a sheepskin, with a leather belt round 
his middle. We left the house, and found in the street 
the two convicts who had jumped from the window — one 
was dead, his head being smashed on the pavement ; the 
other had both his legs broken. 

We left them as we found them, and set out to return 
to the Place du Gouvernement ; but what was our surprise 
to find this impossible, the fire having spread to such an 
enormous extent ! To right and left was one wreath of 
flames, the wind was blowing hard, and the roofs were 
falling in. We were forced to take another course. Un- 
fortunately, we could not make our prisoner understand 
us ; he seemed more like a bear than a man. 

After walking two hundred paces, we found a street on 
our right ; but before entering it, we wished out of curiosity 
to see the house from which they had fired on us. We 

20 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

made Cur prisoner go in, following close behind ; but we 
had scarcely taken the precaution, when we heard a cry 
of alarm, and saw several men flying off with lighted 
torches in their hands. After crossing a large courtyard, 
we saw that the house we had taken for an ordinary one 
was a magnificent palace. We left two men as sentinels 
at the first entrance to warn us, should we be surprised. 
As we had candles with us, we lit several and entered. 
Never in my life have I seen such costly and beautiful 
furniture as met our eyes, and, above all, such a collection 
of paintings of the Flemish and Italian schools. Amongst 
all these grandeurs, a chest filled with firearms of great 
beauty attracted our attention first. I took possession of 
a brace of horse-pistols, inlaid with pearls and precious 
stones. I also took a small machine for gauging the force 
of powder. 

We had been wandering about in these vast and 
beautiful rooms for more than an hour, when we heard 
a terrible explosion overhead. The shock was so great 
that we felt certain of being crushed under the ruins of the 
palace. We ran downstairs cautiously, but were horror- 
struck on discovering that the two men we had placed 
below as sentries were gone. We looked a long while for 
them, and at last found them in the street. They told us 
that on hearing the explosion they had taken to their heels 
as fast as possible, thinking that the whole palace was 
falling on them. Before leaving we tried to discover the 
cause of our terror. In the great dining-hall the ceiling 
had fallen, and a large glass chandelier was broken in a 
thousand pieces. A bomb had been concealed in an 
earthenware stove. The Russians evidently considered 
that any means were good enough to destroy us. 

While we were still in the palace we heard the cry 
* Fire !' from our two sentinels, who saw that the palace 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

was burning. The smoke was now bursting out in several 
places thick and black, then it became red, and finally the 
whole building was in flames. At the end of a quarter oi 
an hour the roof, made of coloured and varnished iron, fell 
in with a frightful noise, bringing with it three-quarters of 
the entire building. 

After a great many windings in and out, we entered 
a wide, long street with splendid palaces on each side, 
which ought to have led us in the direction from which we 
had come, but our convict guide could tell us nothing. 
He was only useful in occasionally carrying our wounded 
man, who walked with great difficulty. We met several 
men with long beards and sinister faces looking still more 
terrible by the lurid light of the torches they carried ; we 
let them pass us quietly. 

We then met a number of Chasseurs of the Guard, who 
told us that the Russians themselves had set fire to the 
town, and that the men we had just met did the business. 
Soon afterwards we surprised three of these wretches 
setting fire to a Greek church. On seeing us, two of 
them threw away their torches and fled. We went up 
to the third, who kept his torch, and in spite of us 
tried to go on with his work ; a stroke with the butt- 
end of a musket on the head soon punished him for his 
obstinacy. 

Just then we met a patrol of Fusilier- Chasseurs, who 
like us had lost their way. The sergeant in command 
told me that he had met convicts setting fire to a great 
many houses, that he had found one whose wrist he had 
to cut with his sword to force him to drop the torch, but 
that he had picked up the torch with his left hand to 
continue his piece of work, and they were obliged to kill 
him. 

Further on we heard cries from some women calling in 

22 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

French for help ,' we went into the house from whence the 
cries came, beheving that the women must be cantinieres 
taken by the Russians. But on entering we saw spread 
about here and there several costumes of different kinds, 
all very costly, and two ladies of very dishevelled appear- 
ance came running up to us. They had with them a boy 
of twelve or fifteen. They begged our protection against 
the soldiers of the Russian police, who were going to burn 
their house without giving them time to take away their 
possessions. Amongst their things were Caesar's mantle, 
Brutus's helmet, and Joan of Arc's cuirass : for the ladies 
told us that they were actresses and Frenchwomen, but 
that their husbands had been forced to serve in the 
Russian army. For the time we were able to stop the 
burning of the house, and we took the Russian police 
(four of them) to our regiment, which was still in the 
Place du Gouvernement. After all these troubles we got 
there at two o'clock in the morning, from the opposite side 
to that by which we had left. When the Colonel heard 
that we had come back, he came to tell us how displeased 
he was with us, and to ask us what we had been doing 
since seven o'clock yesterday evening. But when he saw 
our prisoners and our wounded man, and we had told him 
of all the dangers we had been through, he said he was 
pleased to see us again, as he had been very uneasy 
about us. 

On glancing at the Place where the men bivouacked, it 
seemed to be an assembly from all parts of the world, for 
our soldiers were clothed as Kalmucks, Chinese, Cossacks, 
Tartars, Persians, and Turks, and many of them covered 
with splendid furs. There were even some dressed in 
French Court dress, wearing swords with steel hilts shining 
like diamonds. Add to this that the space was covered 
with all kinds of dainties to eat, abundance of wines and 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

liqueurs, a little fresh meat, a quantity of hams and fish, 
a little flour, but no bread. 

On that day (the 15th), the day after our arrival, the 
regiment left the Place du Gouvernement at nine in the 
morning for the neighbourhood of the Kremlin, where 
the Emperor had taken up his quarters. I was left at the 
Governor's palace with fifteen men. 

About ten o'clock I saw a General on horseback riding 
up, looking like General Pernetty.* He was leading a 
young man dressed in a sheepskin cape, fastened by a red 
woollen belt. The General asked me if I was in charge 
of the guard, and on my saying ' Yes,' he continued : 

* Very good. You will see that this man is put to death 
with the bayonet. I have just caught him with a torch 
setting fire to the palace where I am staying.' 

I told off four men, therefore, to carry out the General's 
orders. But French soldiers are not made for this kind 
of work — in cold blood. Our blows did not pierce through 
his sheepskin, and we should have spared his life on account 
of his youth (moreover, he had not the appearance of a 
criminal), but that the General remained looking on till 
he saw the poor wretch fall from a shot in the side. We 
left him lying where he was. 

Soon after another man came, an inhabitant of the 
place, but a Frenchman and Parisian by origin. He said 
he was proprietor of the baths, and asked me for a safe- 
conduct, as they were setting fire to his establishment. I 
gave him four men, who came back almost directly, how- 
ever, saying that the place was in flames already. 

A few hours after our dreadful execution, the men came 
to tell me that a woman walking through the Place had 
thrown herself on the unfortunate young man's body. I 

* I learned since that it was General Pernetty, commander of the 
gunners of the Imperial Guard. — Authors Note, 

24 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

went to see her, and she tried to make us understand that 
it was her husband, or at any rate a relation. She was 
sitting on the ground, holding the dead man's head on 
her lap, stroking his face, and from time to time kissing 
him, but without shedding a tear. At last, not able to bear 
such a heart-rending scene, I brought her into the guard- 
room and gave her a glass of liqueur, which she eagerly 
drank, then a second, and a third, in fact, as much as she 
could drink. She gave us to understand that she would 
stay for three days where she was, waiting for the dead 
man to come to life again, believing, like all the Russian 
peasants, that the dead revive in three days. She fell 
asleep at last on the sofa. 

At five o'clock our company came back, and was again 
put on picket duty, so I was there for another twenty- 
four hours. The rest of the regiment was busy trying 
to extinguish the fire round the Kremlin ; they were 
successful for the time, but the fire broke out again 
afterwards more fiercely than ever. 

After the company had returned, the Captain sent patrols 
in different directions. One was sent to the baths, but came 
back directly, telling us that the moment they arrived the 
whole place fell in with a terrible noise, and that the 
sparks, carried far by a west wind, had caused fires in 
many places. 

During all that evening and for part of the night, our 
patrols were bringing in Russian soldiers from all quarters 
of the town, driven out by the fire from the houses where 
they were hidden. Amongst them were two officers — one 
of the regular army, the other of the militia ; the first 
allowed himself to be disarmed of his sword, only asking 
that he might keep a gold medal hanging at his side ; but 
the other, a young man, having a cartridge-belt besides 
a sword, objected to my taking them, and, speaking in 

25 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

French, told us he was in the militia. However, after 
he had given us his reasons, we made ours pretty clear 
to him. 

At midnight the fire broke out again near the Kremlin ; 
there were fresh efforts made to extinguish it. But on 
the i6th, at three o'clock in the morning, it recommenced 
more violently than ever ; this time it spread. 

During the night of the 15th and i6th, I and two of 
my friends, non-commissioned officers like myself, decided 
to explore the city and the Kremlin we had heard so much 
of — so we set out. There was no need of a torch to light 
us ; but, as we intended to pay visits to the houses and 
cellars of the Muscovite gentlemen, we each took a man 
with us armed with candles. 

My comrades knew their way a little, but as at every 
instant fresh houses fell in, the streets lost their character, 
and we were soon hopelessly lost. After walking aimlessly 
for some time, we fortunately met a Jew tearing his beard 
and hair at seeing the synagogue of which he was rabbi 
burning away. As he spoke German, he told us his 
troubles, saying that he and others of his religion had put 
everything valuable they possessed into the synagogue for 
safety, but that now all was lost. We tried to comfort 
this child of Israel, took him by the arm, and asked him 
to lead us to the Kremlin. I can hardly help laughing 
now when I remember that, in the midst of such a disaster, 
the Jew asked us if we had anything to sell or exchange. 
I really think he asked the question from force of habit, as 
just then no trading was possible. 

After going through several districts of the town, the 
greater part of them on fire, and admiring the fine streets 
still standing, we reached a little open place on a slight 
hill not far from the Moskowa. Here the Jew pointed out 
to us the towers of the Kremlin, as clear as day by the light 

26 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

of the fires. We stayed here to visit a cellar which some 
Lancers of the Guard were just leaving. We took some 
wine and sugar and a quantity of preserved fruits, and 
gave them all to the Jew to carry, under our protection. 
It was daylight when we reached the first enclosure of 
the Kremlin. We passed under a door built of gray stone, 
surmounted by a belfry and a bell in honour of St. Nicholas, 
whose statue stood in a niche over the door. This saint, 
at least six feet high, richly dressed, was worshipped by 
every Russian who passed by, even the convicts. He is 
the patron saint of Russia. 

When we had passed through the first enclosure we turned 
to the right, and after crossing a street with much difficulty, 
on account of thc' disorder caused by a fire which had just 
burst out in some houses where the cantinieres of the 
Guard were lodged, we reached a high wall topped by 
great towers with golden eagles on them. Passing through 
a large gateway, we found ourselves in a courtyard and 
opposite the palace. The Emperor had been there since 
the day before; the 14th and 15th he had slept in the 
suburbs. 

As soon as we arrived we found some friends in the 
ist Chasseurs picketing there, who invited us to breakfast. 
We ate some good meat, a treat we had not enjoyed for a 
long time, and we had also some excellent wine to drink. 
The Jew, who was still with us, was forced to eat with us, 
in spite of his repugnance to the ham. I ought to say, 
however, that the Chasseurs, who had some silver bullion 
taken from the Mint, had promised to do business with 
him. The ingots were of the size and shape of a brick. 
It was getting on to mid-day while we sat at breakfast with 
our friends, our backs against the enormous guns which 
guard each side of the arsenal, when we heard the cry 
' To arms !' The fire had attacked the Kremlin, and 

27 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

firebrands began to fall into the courtyard where the 
Artillery of the Guard were stationed with all their caissons. 
There was besides a great quantity of tow, left by the 
Russians, part of which was already in flames. The fear 
of an explosion disordered everything, and the confusion 
was increased by the presence of the Emperor, who was 
obliged to leave the Kremlin. 

We parted from our friends while this was going on, 
and set out to rejoin the regiment. We had explained to 
our guide where it was, and he tried to take us there by a 
short-cut which we found to be impossible, as the flames 
drove us back. We had to wait till the passage was free, 
for now the fire had spread all round the Kremlin, and the 
violence of the wind blew bits of red-hot wood against our 
legs, forcing us to shelter in a cellar where several men 
had taken refuge already. We stayed there for some time, 
and when we came out, we met the Guards going to the 
Peterskoe Palace, whither the Emperor had now to betake 
himself. Only the first battalion of the 2nd Chasseurs 
remained at the Kremlin. It kept back the fire from the 
palace, for the Emperor returned there on the i8th. I 
forgot to say that the Prince of Neufchatel, wishing to see 
the extent of the fire round the Kremlin, had mounted 
with an officer on one of the battlements of the palace, 
and had been nearly blown over by the fearful wind. 

The fire and the wind continued to rage, but there was 
now a free passage by which the Emperor had just gone 
out. We followed it, and found ourselves almost directly 
on the banks of the Moskowa. We walked along the 
quay, following it till we found a street free from flames, 
or one altogether burnt out. By the road the Emperor 
had taken, several houses had fallen in ruins, and passage 
that way was impossible. 

We found ourselves at last in a district all burnt to 

28 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

cinders, and the Jew tried with much difficulty to find a 
street leading to the Place du Gouvernement. As we 
walked, the wind blew hot ashes into our eyes, so that we 
could not see. We plunged through the streets with no 
worse mishap than getting our feet scorched, for we had 
to walk over the iron sheeting from the roofs and on the 
burning cinders which covered the streets. 

We had already gone a long distance, when suddenly 
we found a clear empty space to our right. This was the 
Jews' quarter ; the houses, being all of wood, had been 
burnt to the ground. On seeing this, our guide uttered 
a cry of despair, and fell down unconscious. We hastened 
to take off the burdens he carried, and, unpacking a bottle 
of liqueur, we made him swallow a few drops, then poured 
a little over his face. He soon opened his eyes, and when 
we asked him why he had fainted, he told us that his 
house had been burnt, and that probably his family had 
perished. On saying this, he again fell unconscious, so 
that we were obliged to leave him in spite of not knowing 
which way to turn without a guide. In such a labyrinth 
we had to make a decision, however, and we gave the 
package to one of the men to carry, and continued our 
way, but we were stoppe^i directly by obstacles across our 
road. 

The distance round to the next street was about 
300 yards, but we dared not traverse it on account of 
the blinding hot ashes. While we were deciding what 
to do, one of my friends proposed making an excursion 
to reconnoitre. I advised him to wait, and the others 
agreed with me, when, seeing our irresolution, he cried, 
' Who loves me follows me !' and set off. The other 
followed with two of our men, and I remained with the 
man bearing the package, which consisted of three bottles 
of wine, five of liqueurs, and some preserved fruits. 

29 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

They had hardly gone thirty yards, however, when 
the leader disappeared ; he fell all his length, and the 
second picked him up. The two last had to cover their 
faces with their hands, nearly blinded by the ashes like the 
first, who could not see at all, enveloped as they were by 
a whirling cloud of this dust. The first one, not being 
able to see, cried and swore like the devil. The others 
were obliged to leave him, as they could not bring him 
back to where I was. I was afraid to join them, the path 
becoming more and more dangerous. We had to wait 
for an hour before I could get to them, and we provisionally 
emptied one of the bottles. 

When at last we were reunited, we saw the impossibility 
of advancing without danger. We decided to retrace our 
steps, and the idea struck us of each taking a sheet 
of iron to cover our heads, holding it to the windy and 
dusty side. After bending the iron into the shape of 
shields, we set out, one of the men in front ; then I came 
leading the half-blinded man by the hand, the others 
following. We succeeded after an infinite deal of trouble, 
stumbling time after time. 

We now found ourselves in a new street, where several 
Jewish families and some Chinese were huddled up in 
corners, keeping guard over the few possessions they had 
saved or had taken from others. They seemed surprised 
to see us ; they had, perhaps, not seen any other Frenchmen 
in that quarter. We went up to a Jew, and made him 
understand that he was to lead us to the Place du Gouverne- 
ment. A father came with his son, and as the streets were 
blocked by ruined houses, or by others in flames, it was 
only after many windings and great difficulties, and many 
halts for rest, that at eleven o'clock at night we at last 
reached the place we had left the evening before. I had 
had no rest since we came to Moscow, so I lay down on 

30 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

some beautiful furs our soldiers had taken, and slept till 
seven the next morning. 

The company was not yet off duty, as for thirty-six 
-ours all the regiments, the Fusiliers, and even the Young 
Guard, had been occupied in suppressing the fire under 
the direction of Marshal Mortier, who had been appointed 
Governor of the town. As soon as it was extinguished on 
one side it broke out again on another. However, sufficient 
houses were preserved for lodgings, but with infinite diffi- 
culty, as Rostopchin had removed all the hand-pumps. 
A few were found, but they were quite useless. 

During the i6th orders had been given to shoot everyone 
found setting fire to houses. This order was executed at 
once. A little opfen space near the Place du Gouverne- 
ment was called by us the Place des Pendus, as here a 
number of incendiaries were shot and hung on the trees. 

The Emperor, on the day of our entry, had commanded, 
through Marshal Mortier, that no pillage was to be allowed. 
The order had been given in every regiment ; but as soon 
as it was known that the Russians themselves had fired 
the town, it was impossible to restrain the men. Everyone 
took what he needed, and even things that were not needed. 
On the night of the 17th the Captain allowed me to take 
ten men on special duty and hunt for provisions. He 
sent twenty in a different direction, as pillage* was to be 
allowed, but enjoining as much order as possible. So I 
set out on my third night's expedition. We crossed a 
wide street leading from our Place, which had been pre- 
served from the fire, and here many superior officers and 
a large number of army employes had quartered them- 
selves. We walked through several other streets, where 
nothing was left but piles of sheet-iron off the roofs ; 

* Our soldiers called the pillage of the town the /aire de Moscou. — 
Author's Note. 

31 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

the wind of the day before had swept them clean of 
cinders. 

The quarter of the town we reached was stiJl standing, 
but we saw nothing except a few hackney coaches without 
horses. Absolute silence reigned. We looked at the 
carriages, and found nothing ; but we had hardly got away, 
when we heard a ferocious cry behind us. This was twice 
repeated, and in two different directions. We listened for 
some time, and heard nothing more ; so we decided to 
enter two of the houses — I into the first with five men, 
and a corporal into another with five others. We lighted 
the lanterns we had with us, and, sword in hand, we made 
ready to force our way wherever we could find what we 
wanted. 

The house I tried was shut up, and the door fastened 
by large plates of iron. This was annoying, as we wanted 
to effect our entrance quietly ; but, noticing that the cellar 
door was open, two of our men went down, and there they 
discovered a trap-door communicating with the house, and 
in this way they opened the door for us. When we had 
entered, we saw that we were in a grocer's shop. Every- 
thing was left in order, except in a dining-room, where 
some cooked meat was left on the table, and several bags 
of small change on a chest. 

After exploring the house, we collected provisions. We 
found flour, butter, quantities of sugar and coffee, and a 
large barrel full of eggs arranged in layers and packed in 
hay. We made our choice without disputing about price, 
for we considered we might as well help ourselves, as the 
house had been deserted, and at any moment it might take 
fire. While we were engaged this way, the corporal sent 
to tell me that the house he had entered belonged to a 
coach-builder, and contained more than thirty of the 
pretty little carriages the Russians call drouschkys; and that 

32 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

he had found a lot of Russian soldiers lying on rush beds, 
who, seeing the Frenchmen, had fallen on their knees, 
their hands crossed on their breasts, their foreheads to the 
ground, imploring mercy. Seeing, however, that they were 
wounded, the corporal tried to relieve them, as they were 
in no state to help themselves, nor could they hurt us. 

I went immediately to the coach-builder's, and chose 
two pretty convenient little carriages to transport all our 
provisions. 

I also saw the wounded men ; five of them were gunners 
with broken legs. There were seventeen altogether amongst 
them, some Asiatics, recognisable by their manner of 
saluting. 

As I was going out with my carriages, I caught sight of 
three men, one of whom had a lance, the second a sword, 
and the third a lighted torch, setting the grocer's house on 
fire. The men I had left there were so busy choosing and 
packing up all the good things that they were quite unaware 
of what was going on. We shouted out to frighten the 
rascals, but they never budged, and looked quietly at us. 
The man with the lance even put himself in a position of 
defence, should we attack them. This was difficult, as we 
had no swords. The corporal came up, however, with two 
loaded pistols taken from the room where he found the 
wounded men ; he gave one to me, and made as if to fire 
with the other at the man with the lance. I prevented 
him at the moment, fearing that the noise might bring out 
a greater number upon us. 

On seeing this, one of our men, a Breton, seized the 
pole of One of the little carriages, and, using it as a quarter- 
staff, attacked the man, who was not used to this sort of 
fighting, and broke both his legs. He uttered a terrible 
cry as he fell ; but the Breton, in his rage, gave him no 
time to cry again, and struck him a violent blow on the 

33 i> 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

head. No cannon-ball could have done the work better. 
He would have served the two others in the same way, had 
not we prevented him. The fellow with the lighted torch 
ran into the grocer's house with two of our men after him, 
and only after two blows with the sword would he listen 
to reason. He then submitted with a good grace, and was 
harnessed to one of the carriages, together with a man just 
. seized in the street. 

We now got ready for our departure. Our two carriages 
were packed with everything in the shop — on the first, 
drawn by the two Russians, we had placed the barrel of 
eggs, and had taken the precaution to tie the men round 
the middle by a stout rope with a double knot ; the second 
carriage was drawn by four of our own men, until we could 
find a team like the first. 

But just as we were setting off, we saw fire coming from 
the coachmaker's house. We could not leave the wounded 
men to perish in agony, so we carried them into a stable 
separated from the house. That was all we could do, 
and, after performing this action of common humanity, 
we departed as quickly as possible to get out of reach of 
the flames, which were bursting out in several directions. 
Hardly, however, had we gone twenty-five yards, when 
we heard the poor wounded wretches shrieking frightfully. 
We stopped again, and the corporal went back with four 
men to find out the cause. The fire had caught some 
straw in the yard, and was fast gaining on their place of 
shelter. 

The corporal and his men did all in their power to save 
them, and then rejoined us ; but it is more than probable 
that the wounded men perished. 

We went on our way, and for fear of being overtaken b}- 
the fire we forced our first team to trot, urging them on by 
blows from our swords. However, there were no means 

'34 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

of avoiding the fire, for when we got near the Place du 
Gouvernement we saw that the principal street where 
many of our superior officers were quartered was in flames. 
This was the third time it had been set on fire, but it was 
also the last. 

We now saw that the fire was only burning here and 
there, and that by running one could get through the clear 
spaces. When we reached the first of the burning houses 
we stopped, considering whether it was possible to get ■ 
across them. Several had fallen already, and those 
nearest to us threatened to crush us under the flames. 
However, we could not remain where we were, for we 
saw that the houses behind us had also caught fire. 

Thus, not only were the flames in front of and behind us, 
but also on each side, and we were compelled to pass 
through a great vault of fire. We sent the carriage on 
first, but the Russians objected to be in front, in spite of 
several blows from the flat of our swords. Our own men, 
therefore, went first, and, encouraging each other, got over 
the worst place triumphantly. We therefore redoubled 
our blows on the Russians, who, fearing there was worse 
to follow, rushed forward crying ' Houra!'* in great danger 
from the different articles of furniture which continually 
fell into the street. As soon as the last carriage had got 
over, we followed them, running, and found ourselves in a 
place where four streets met, all on fire, and although the 
,rain was now pouring down, the fire still raged, and at 
every moment houses, and even entire streets, disappeared 
in the smoke and ruins. 

It was necessary to rejoin the rest of the regiment as 
quickly as possible, but we saw how impracticable this 
was, and that we should have to wait till the whole street 
was reduced to ashes. So we decided to turn back, and 

* Houra / means ' En avant !' — Author's Note. 

35 D— 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

immediately acted on this. The Russians this time went 
first without hesitation, but just as they had traversed 
the dangerous passage, and we were about to follow, 
we heard a terrible noise — the rending of beams, and the 
fall of burning wood and iron roofs crashing on to our 
carriage. Instantly everything was annihilated, even the 
Russians. We did not much regret them, but the loss of 
our provisions distressed us very much, especially the eggs. 
Our situation was now dreadful ; we were blocked in by 
the fire without any means of retreat. Happily for us, 
just where the four streets met, there was a place where 
we could shelter from the flames, and wait until the entire 
demolition of a street should afford us a passage. While 
sheltering thus, we noticed that one of the houses was an 
Italian confectioner's shop, and although it was on the 
point of burning, we thought we had better try to save a 
few good things if we could. The door was locked, but a 
window was open on the first floor, and chance provided 
us with a ladder, which, placed on a barrel found against 
the house, was long enough for the men to reach the 
window. 

Although part of the house was already on fire, nothing 
stopped them. They opened the door to us, and we 
discovered, greatly to our satisfaction and delight, that 
everything was left in the house. We found all kinds of 
preserved fruits and liqueurs and a quantity of sugar, but 
what astonished us most of all was the finding of three 
large sacks of flour. Our surprise was greater still on 
seeing some pots of mustard from the street of St. Andre 
des Arts, Paris. 

We hastily emptied the shop, and made a store of 
everything in the middle of the street we occupied, until 
we could transport it all to our company. As the rain 
still poured down, we made a shelter with the doors of the 

36 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

houses, and bivouacking there, we stayed for more than four 
hours, waiting for an opening through the fire. 

To pass the time we made jam-fritters, and when we 
departed we took away all we could possibly carry. The 
remaining carriage and our sacks of flour we left under 
the care of five men, meaning to come back with others 
to fetch them. It was quite impossible to make use of 
the carriage, as the middle of the street was filled up with 
a quantity of furniture, broken and half burnt up, pianos, 
glass chandeliers, and an infinity of other very expensive 
things. 

At last, after crossing the Place des Pendus, we reached 
the rest of the compan}' at ten in the morning ; we had 
parted from them at ten the preceding evening. We lost 
no time in sending back for what we had left behind, and 
ten men set out at once. They returned an hour after- 
wards, each carrying something, and, in spite of difficulties, 
bringing the carriage also. They told us they had been 
obliged to clear out the place where the Russians had 
been crushed, and that they had found the bodies quite 
burnt and withered up. 

On the same day (the i8th) we were taken off duty, and 
we took possession of our quarters in a fine street hitherto 
preserved from fire, not far from the first enclosure of the 
Kremlin. Our company had a large cafe assigned to it ; 
one of the rooms contained two biUiard-tables, The non- 
commissioned officers were quartered in a boyar's house, 
which occupied the first floor. Our men took the billiard- 
tables to pieces to make room, and some of them made 
capes for themselves of the cloth. 

We found a great quantity of wine in the cellars, and 
some Jamaica rum, also a large cellar filled with barrels 
of excellent beer, packed in ice to keep it fresh during the 
summer. We found at our boyar's house fifteen large 

2,7 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

cases of wine and sparkling champagne. The same day 
our men discovered a large sugar store, of which we took 
a quantity to make punch with. This lasted all the time 
we were at Moscow, and we never missed a day without 
drinking some. Every evening we made enough for three 
or four times, in a large silver bowl which the Russian 
boyar had forgotten to take away. This bowl held six 
bottles at the least. Add to all this a fine collection of 
pipes and some excellent tobacco. 

On the 19th the Emperor inspected us at the Kremlin 
opposite the palace, and on the same day I had orders 
to join a detachment of Fusilier-Chasseurs and Grenadiers 
and a squadron of Polish Lancers — 200 men in all. Our 
object was to keep the Empress's summer palace, at 
the farther end of Moscow, free from fire. This detach- 
ment was commanded by a General whom I took to be 
General Kellerman. 

We left at eight in the evening, and it was half-past 
nine before we arrived at a spacious building looking about 
the size of the Tuileries, built of wood, and covered with 
stucco to represent marble. Guards were immediately 
posted outside, and patrols were sent out for greater safety. 
I was sent with several men to inspect the interior, to see 
if anyone were hidden there. 

I was fortunate in having this opportunity of seeing 
this immense building, furnished with all the combined 
splendour and brilliance of Europe and Asia. It seemed 
as if everything had been lavished on its decoration, and 
yet within an hour it was entirely consumed. A quarter 
of an hour after we had used all the precautions possible 
against fire, it broke out behind us, in front of us, to right, 
to left, and we were unable to see who set it going. There 
it was in a dozen places at once, and flaring from every 
attic window. 

38 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

The General immediately called for the sappers to try 
to cut the fire off, but it was impossible. We had no 
pumps, and not even any water. Directly afterwards we 
saw several men, some of them with torches still burning, 
come out from under the great staircase, by some subter- 
ranean way, and try to go quietly off. We ran after them 
and stopped them ; there were twenty-one of them, and 
eleven others were arrested on the other side. These were 
not seen coming out of the palace, and nothing about 
them showed that they were incendiaries. More than 
half of them, however, were evidently convicts. 

The utmost we could do was to save some pictures 
and a few other valuables, amongst which were Imperial 
ornaments, velvet mantles lined with ermine, besides many 
other precious things which we afterwards had to leave 
behind. About half an hour after the fire broke out, a 
furious wind got up, and in less than ten minutes we were 
hemmed in by the fire, and could neither advance nor 
retreat. Several men were hurt by falling pieces of burning 
timber. It was two o'clock in the morning before we could 
get out of this hell, and we then found that the fire had 
spread for more than half a league all round — for the 
whole of this quarter was built of wood, and was very 
beautiful. 

We set out again to return towards the Kremlin, taking 
with us our prisoners, thirty-two in number. I was put 
in command of the rear-guard, and the escort of the 
prisoners, with orders to bayonet those who tried to run 
away or refused to follow. 

Two-thirds of these wretches were convicts, with 
sinister faces ; the others were middle-class citizens and 
Russian police, recognised by their uniform. 

As we went along, I noticed amongst the prisoners 
one who was muffled up in a fairly clean green cloak, 

39 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

crying like a child, and saying repeatedly in good 
French : 

' Mon Dieu ! I have lost my wife and my son in the 
fire!' 

He seemed very unhappy, so I asked him who he was. 
He told me that he was Swiss, and came from near 
Zurich, and that for seventeen years he had been at 
Moscow teaching German and French. He then began 
again to cry out in despair, always repeating : 

* My dear son ! my poor son !' 

I was very sorry for the poor fellow. I tried to comfort 
him, telling him that very likely he would find them ; and, 
as I knew that he would be condemned to die with the 
others, I determined to save him. Two men walked near 
him arm-in-arm, one young, and the other middle-aged. 
I asked the Swiss who they were ; he told me they were 
tailors, a father and son. 

* But,' he said, ' the father is happier than I ; he is not 
separated from his son, and they can die together.' 

He knew the fate that awaited him ; he had heard the 
order given in French. While he was speaking to me, 
he stopped suddenly, and gazed wildly in front of him. I 
asked him what was the matter, but he did not answer. 
Soon afterwards he sighed heavily and began to weep 
again, saying that he was looking for the place where his 
house had stood, and that it must be there, as he recog- 
nised the large stove still standing. I must here say that 
we could see as plainly as in broad daylight, not only the 
town itself, but far beyond. 

Just then the head of the column, which was detached 
from the Polish Lancers, stopped still, not knowing where 
to turn, as the narrow street was completely blocked up. 
I took advantage of this delay to let the unhappy man 
satisfy himself whether the bodies of his wife and son 

40 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

were among the ashes of his house, and I offered to 
accompany him. We went to the site of the house, and 
at first saw nothing to confirm his suspicions. I was 
beginning to comfort him, saying that no doubt they were 
saved, when, at the entrance to the cellar, I saw some- 
thing blackened and without form, all twisted up. I 
examined it, and found it to be a dead body, but whether 
man or woman it was impossible to see. I had hardly 
time, either, for the Swiss, who had come up behind me, 
uttered a frightful cry and fell to the ground. I raised 
him with the help of a man who stood near, but when he 
came to himself, he rushed in despair all over the ruins of 
his house, and with another terrible cry he called for his 
son, and flung himself into the cellar, where I heard him 
fall heavily like an inert mass. 

I did not wish to follow him ; I hastened to rejoin the 
detachment, reflecting sadly on what I had just seen. 
One of my friends asked me what I had done with the 
man who spoke French, and I told him of the tragic 
scene I had just witnessed. As we were still halted, I 
asked him to come and see the place. We went to the 
cellar door, and heard groaning. My comrade proposed 
to go down and help him, but, knowing that to save him 
from the cellar was to lead him to certain death, as all 
the prisoners were to be shot, I said that it would be 
very foolhardy to descend into such a place without a 
light. 

Luckily the order 'To arms!' was given at that 
moment. We waited while the left column started, and 
as we were preparing to follow, we heard steps behind us. 
I turned round, and was astounded to see the poor Swiss, 
looking like a ghost, and with his arms laden with furs to 
cover the bodies of his wife and son. He had found his 
son dead in the cellar, but not burnt ; the body at the 

41 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURCOGNE 

door was his wife's. I advised him to return to the cellar, 
and hide himself till we had left, when he could perform 
his painful duty. I do not know if he understood me, but 
we left him. 

We reached the Kremlin at five o'clock in the morning, 
and put the prisoners in a place of safety ; but I took the 
precaution to keep back the two tailors, father and son, 
on my own account. As will be seen, they were very 
useful to us during our stay in Moscow. 

On the 20th the fire had slackened a little. The 
Governor of the town. Marshal Mortier, and General 
Milhaud, who was appointed Commandant of the Place, 
were both very active in organizing a body of police. 
This was formed from the Italians, Germans, and 
Frenchmen living in Moscow who had escaped Rostop- 
chin's rigorous orders to leave the city by hiding them- 
selves. 

While I was looking out of the window of our quarters 
at mid - day, I saw the shooting of a convict. He 
refused to kneel down, but met his death bravely, and, 
striking his breast, he seemed to defy his executioners. 
A few hours afterwards our prisoners met with the 
same fate. 

I spent the day quietly enough, but at seven o'clock the 
Adjutant-Major, Delaitre, ordered me to surrender myself 
at a place he named to me for having allowed three 
prisoners entrusted to me to escape. I made what 
excuses I could, and went to the place indicated ; other 
non-commissioned officers were there already. I reflected 
that my conscience was quite clear for having saved the 
lives of these men, convinced as I was of their inno- 
cence. 

The room I was in opened on to a long, narrow gallery 
connecting the house with another wing of the building. 

42 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

A part of this wing had been burnt, so that no one in- 
habited it, and I noticed that the portion still standing 
had not been examined. I was naturally curious to see it, 
and having nothing to do, I went to the end of the gallery. 
I fancied I heard a noise coming from a room with a 
closed door. I listened, and thought I distinguished the 
words of a language I did not understand. I knocked at 
the door, but no one answered, and profound silence 
followed. I then looked through the keyhole, and saw a 
man lying on a sofa, and two women standing, who 
appeared to be keeping him from talking. I knew a few 
words of Polish, which is much like Russian, so I knocked 
again, and begged for some water. No answer came ; but 
at my second recjuest, which I made more forcible by a 
kick on the door, they came and opened it. When I 
entered the room, the two women rushed out into another. 
I closed the door, but the man on the sofa never moved. 
At once I recognised him for a criminal of the lowest 
type, dirty all over from his beard to his boots. His 
clothes consisted of a sheepskin cloak and a leather belt ; 
near him were a lance and two torches, besides two pistols 
at his belt. These last I took from him, and seizing one 
of the torches, I hit him on the side with it, and made him 
open his eyes. On seeing me, he jumped up as if to spring 
upon me, but fell flat down again. I aimed one of his 
pistols at him, but he only gazed at me stupidly, and, 
trying to rise, fell again. After some time, he at last 
succeeded in keeping on his feet. Seeing how drunk he 
was, I took hold of his arm, and leading him from the 
room, I took him to the end of the gallery. When we 
reached the top of the staircase, which descended straight 
down like a ladder, I gave him a push ; he rolled down 
like a barrel, and fell almost against the guard-room door 
opposite the stairs. The men dragged him to a room 

43' 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

where they locked up all of his description, and I did not 
hear him speak again. 

This expedition over, I returned to the room where I 
had found the man, and shut myself in. I looked well 
round to see that there was no one about> then opened 
the second door, and saw the two Dulcineas sitting on a 
sofa. They did not seem surprised to see me, but both 
started talking at once, I not understanding a word. I 
tried to ask them if they had anything to eat ; they under- 
stood me perfectly, and gave me cucumber, onions, a large 
piece of salt fish, and a little beer, but no bread. After- 
wards the younger of the two brought me a bottle of some- 
thing she called kosalki; when I tasted it, I knew it was 
Dantzig gin. In less than half an hour we had emptied 
the bottle, my two Muscovites doing more service than I. 

I stayed for some time with these two sisters, and then 
I returned to my room. I found there a non-commissioned 
officer of my company, who had been waiting for me a long 
time. When I related my adventures, he seemed delighted, 
as he could find no one to wash clothes. He seemed to 
think the two Muscovite ladies would be only too much 
honoured by being asked to wash and mend for French 
soldiers. We waited till ten o'clock, when everyone was 
asleep, as we wished to keep our secret ; then the non- 
commissioned officer returned with the sergeant-major, 
and we went to look for our beauties. They made a lot 
of difficulties at first, not quite knowing where we were 
taking them, but making me understand I was to go with 
them. I went as far as our quarters, where they followed 
us willingly, laughing as they went. We found a small 
room at liberty, which we made over to them, furnish- 
ing it with whatever we could find — all kinds of 
pretty things which the noble Muscovite ladies had not 
been able to carry away. Although our friends had had 

44 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

the appearance of common servants, they were thus trans- 
formed into elegant ladies — ladies, however, who had to 
wash and mend for us. 

On the next morning, the 2ist, I heard a loud report of 
firearms, and was told that several convicts and members 
of the police force had just been shot ; they had been 
caught setting fire to the Foundling Hospital, and to the 
hospital containing our wounded men. The sergeant- 
major came to tell me directly afterwards that I was free. 

When I got back to our quarters, I saw that the two 
tailors I had saved were already at work making some 
capes out of the cloth off the billiard-tables we had taken 
to pieces. I went into the room where we had left our 
women, and found them at the wash-tub, and making 
but poor work of it. This was very natural, however, as 
they were wearing some silk dresses belonging to a 
Baroness. But for want of anything better one had to 
put up with it. During the remainder of the day I was 
busy arranging our quarters and getting in provisions, as 
we were apparently to stay here for some time. To last 
for the winter we had seven large cases of sweet champagne, 
a large quantity of port wine, five hundred bottles of 
Jamaica rum, and more than a hundred great packets of 
sugar. And all this was for six non-commissioned officers, 
two women, and a cook. 

Meat was difficult to get, but on this evening we had a 
cow. I don't know where she came from, but probably 
from some forbidden place ; so we had to kill her at night 
to escape observation. We had a large number of hams, 
having found a shop full of them ; add to all this a quantity 
of salt fish, a few sacks of flour, two large barrels filled 
with suet, which we had taken for butter, and as much 
beer as we wanted. These constituted our provisions, in 
case we had to spend the winter in Moscow. In the 

45 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

evening orders were given for a roll-call at ten o'clock ; 
eighteen men were missing. The remainder of the com- 
pany slept luxuriously in the billiard-room, lying on rich 
furs, sable, lion, fox and bear's skins ; many of them had 
their heads wrapped up turban-fashion in fine cashmeres, 
looking, in fact, like Sultans instead of Grenadier Guards ; 
only the houris were wanting to complete the picture. 

I prolonged my roll-call to eleven o'clock, so that I 
should not have to report the absent men, and they 
returned soon afterwards bending beneath their burdens. 
Amongst other valuable things they brought were several 
silver plaques in relief; also each had a silver ingot, the 
size and form of a brick. For the rest there were furs, 
Indian shawls, silk stuffs brocaded in silver and gold. 
They asked for leave to make two other journeys to fetch 
some wine and preserved fruits left behind in a cellar. I 
gave them permission, and a corporal went with them. 
We non-commissioned officers had a right to 20 per cent, 
of all the things saved from the fire. 

On the 22nd we rested, added to our stock of provisions, 
sang, smoked, laughed and drank, and amused ourselves. 
I paid a visit the same day to an Italian print-seller, whose 
house had escaped the fire. On the morning of the 23rd 
a convict was shot in the courtyard. That same day we 
had orders to be ready the next morning for inspection by 
the Emperor. At eight o'clock on the morning of the 
24th we set out for the Kremlin. Many other regiments 
were collected there for the same reason, and that day 
many medals were given and many promotions made. 
Those who were rewarded deserved well of their country, 
having shed their blood many times on the field of battle. 

I took advantage of this occasion to look at all the 
wonderful things in the Kremlin, and while several other 
regiments were being inspected, I went to see the Church 

46 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

of St. Michael, the tomb of the Russian Emperors. Some 
soldiers of the Guard (the ist Chasseurs) picketed at the 
Kremlin had come here the first day of our arrival, hoping 
to find the treasure said to be concealed. They searched 
through the enormous crypt, but found instead of treasures 
nothing but tombs in stone, covered over with velvet, 
having inscriptions on silver plates. They found also 
several people from the town who had fled there for refuge, 
thinking that the presence of the dead would protect them. 
Amongst them was a pretty young woman, said to belong 
to one of the best Moscow families, who had foolishly 
become infatuated with one of the superior officers. She 
behaved more foolishly still by following him in the retreat. 
Like so many others, she died of cold, hunger, and want. 

After the crypt of St. Michael, I went to see the famous 
bell. It is nineteen feet high, and a great part of it is 
embedded in the earth, probably by its own weight, as it 
has lain on the ground ever since the fire burned down 
the tower in which it hung. Near it, and opposite to the 
palace, is the arsenal, with an enormous cannon on each 
side of the door. On the right, farther off, is the cathedral, 
its nine bell-towers covered with gilded copper. The cross 
of Ivan the Great is on the highest tower, and dominates 
them all. It is made of wood, thirty feet high, covered with 
silver-gilt plates, and is held in its place by gilded chains. 

Some days after this, the men on extra duty, carpenters 
and others, were ordered to take down this cross, to be 
conveyed as a trophy to Paris ; but, on their attempting to 
remove it, it fell by its great weight, nearly killing the 
men, who were dragged down by the chains they held. 
The same thing happened with the great eagles on the 
towers round the Kremlin walls. 

It was mid-day by the time we had been inspected. 
We went out by the arched gateway containing the great 

47 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

St. Nicholas. Several Russian slaves were praying there, 
bowing and crossing themselves before the saint ; they 
were no doubt making intercession against us. 

On the 25th I and several friends explored the ruins of 
the town. We saw much that we had not seen before. 
Everywhere we met Russian peasants — women dirty and 
repulsive, some of them Jews, mixing helter-skelter with 
soldiers, and searching in cellars for things which might 
have escaped the fire. Besides wine and sugar, they were 
loaded with shawls, cashmeres, magnificent Siberian furs, 
stuffs brocaded with silk, gold and silver, and several with 
silver plate and other precious objects. There were Jews 
there, too, with their wives and daughters, making all kinds 
of offers to our men for the possession of our things. 

On the evening of the same day a Greek church opposite 
to us was set on fire, close to the place where Marshal 
Mortier was quartered. We could not extinguish the fire, 
in spite of all our efforts, and this church, which was in 
beautiful preservation, was reduced in an incredibly short 
time to ashes. Many unfortunate people had taken refuge 
there with the few things remaining to them. This made 
the circumstance much worse. 

On the 26th I was on guard over the Emperor's carriages 
in a coach-house at the farther end of the town. Opposite 
were some large barracks saved from the fire, where part 
of our army was quartered. To get there I had to traverse 
more than a league of ruins on the left bank of the Moskowa, 
only seeing here and there a few rafters of the churches 
left. Everything else was reduced to ashes. On the right 
bank a few pretty country-houses were still left, only 
partially burnt. Close to where I placed my guard there 
was a house which had quite escaped the flames, and out 
of curiosity I went to see it. I met by chance there a 
man who spoke French very well, who told me he came 

48 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

from Strasbourg, and had been led by fate to Moscow only 
a few days before us. He also said that he was a wine- 
merchant dealing in Rhine wines and sweet champagne, 
and that by strokes of bad luck he had lost more than a 
million — partly on account of wine destroyed in shops by 
the fire, and partly by all we had drunk and were still drink- 
ing. He had not even a piece of bread to eat, so I asked him 
to come and share my rice soup ; he accepted gratefully. 

The Emperor issued orders for a thorough organization 
in Moscow, in preparation for remaining there for the 
winter while waiting for peace. The first steps taken 
were for hospitals for the wounded, the Russians being 
treated like ourselves. The stores of provisions scattered 
through the town were concentrated as much as possible. 
Several churches which had escaped the fire were re- 
opened for worship. Near our quarters was a Catholic 
church, where an emigrant French priest said Mass. A 
theatre was even opened, where French and Italian actors 
played comedies — at least, so I was told ; but whether 
this was true or not, I know they were paid in advance 
for six months, in order to convince the Russians that we 
were going to remain for the winter. 

On the 27th I was agreeably surprised to meet two of 
my fellow-townsmen coming to see me. These were 
Flament, from Peruwelz, velite in the Dragoon Guards, 
and Melle, a dragoon from the same regiment, from Conde. 
They were very welcome, for that day we felt merry, so 
we mvited them to dine and spend the evening with us. 
In the men's various foraging expeditions, they found a 
quantity of men's and women's costumes of all nations, 
even French dresses of the time of Louis XVI., all of 
most beautiful materials. So this evening, after dinner, 
we decided to have a ball and wear all these dresses. 

But I must not forget to say that Flament had told 

49 E 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

us a sad piece of news — the loss of the brave 
Lieutenant-Colonel Martod, who commanded the regi- 
ment. On reconnoitring in the outskirts of Moscow two 
days before the 25th, they had fallen into an ambus- 
cade, and were attacked by 3,000 men, both cavalry 
and infantry. Colonel Martod was mortally wounded ; a 
Captain and the Adjutant- Major were made prisoners 
after fighting desperately. Two days after we heard that 
the Colonel was dead. 

Now I must return to our ball — a real carnival, as we 
were all disguised. First of all we dressed up the Russian 
women as French Marquises ; as they knew nothing of 
the business, Flament and I superintended their toilette. 
Our two Russian tailors were dressed as Chinese, I as a 
Russian boyar, Flament as a Marquis — each of us in 
different costume, even our cantiniere, Mother Dubois, 
who wore a beautiful Russian national dress. As we had 
no wigs for our Marquises, the regimental perruquier 
dressed their hair. For grease he used suet, and flour for 
powder. They looked splendid, and when everyone was 
ready we began to dance. I forgot to say that during all 
this time we drank a great deal of punch dealt out to us by 
Melle, the old dragoon. Our Marquises and the cantiniere, 
although they could stand a good deal, were beginning to 
feel their heads swim in consequence of the large quantity 
they had swallowed. 

For music, we had a flute played by a sergeant-major, 

accompanied by the drum to keep time. We began with 

the air : 

' On va leur percer les flancs 
Ram, ram, ram, tam plan ; 
Tire-lire, ram plan.' 

Just as the music struck up, however, and Mother 
Dubois advanced with our Quarter-master, our Marquises, 

50 



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THE FRENCH RECEIVING HOSPITALITY FROM RUSSIAN WOMEN. 
Frotn a sketch made at the time by an officer of N^apoleon s army. 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

excited no doubt by the music, began to jump like 
Tartars, flying from right to left, swinging their arms 
and legs, falling backwards, getting up, only to fall 
again. They seemed to be possessed by the devil. 
There would have been nothing so very extraordmary 
had they worn their Russian clothes, but to see two 
French Marquises jump about like lunatics made us 
nearly die with laughing, and the flute-player was obliged 
to stop playing, the drum filling up the pauses by sound- 
ing the attack. The Marquises began again with re- 
doubled energy, until, exhausted, they sank on the floor. 
We lifted them up and applauded them, and then we 
went on drinking and dancing until four o'clock in the 
morning. 

Mother Dubois, true to her trade, and knowing the full 
value of the clothes she wore (silk brocade in gold and 
silver), went off without a word. As she left, however, 
the sergeant of the guard on police duty, seeing a strange 
lady in the street so early, and thinking he had found a 
prize, went to her, and tried to take her by the arm and 
lead her to his room. But Mother Dubois, who had a 
husband, and, moreover, had drunk a good deal of punch, 
dealt the sergeant such a vigorous blow on the face that 
she knocked him completely over. He shouted out, and, 
as we had not gone to bed yet, we ran down to help him. 
The sergeant was so furious that we had a great piece of 
work to din into his head that he must not arrest a woman 
like Mother Dubois. 

The 28th and 29th we spent in looking after our pro- 
visions. We went out in reconnoitring-parties during 
the day, and at night we went back to take the things 
away. 

On the 30th we were inspected in the street opposite 
our quarters ; when it was over it occurred to the Colonel 

51 E — 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

to show the inspector how the troops were quartered. 
When the turn of our company came, the Colonel took 
the Captain and the sergeant of the week with him ; and 
the Adjutant- Major, Roustan, who knew our quarters, 
walked in front and opened all the doors. After seeing 
nearly everything, the Colonel said : 

' And what about the non-commissioned officers ?' 

' Oh, they are very comfortable,' said the Adjutant- 
Major Roustan. And he began to open the doors of our 
rooms.* 

But, unfortunately, we had not removed the key from 
the door of our Dulcineas' little room (which everyone had 
taken for a cupboard). This the Adjutant-Major opened, 
and, surprised at seeing a space within, he looked and saw 
our birds. He said nothing, locked the door, and put the 
key in his pocket. When he was in the street, he held up 
the key on seeing me, and coming up to me he laughed. 

' Ah !' he said, ' you have some caged birds, and you 
keep them all to yourselves. What in the devil's name 
do you do with those queer customers, and where did you 
find them ? There are not many about.' 

I told him then how I had found them, and how we 
kept them to wash our clothes. 

' Well, then,' he said to the sergeant-major and me, 
' you might lend them to me for a few days to wash my 
shirts, as they are horribly dirty. I hope you will be 
friendly, and not refuse me this.' 

He took the women away the same evening, and no 
doubt they washed all the officers' shirts, as they did not 
come back for seven days. 

A strong detachment of the regiment was sent on 

* It is necessary here to say that we had opened a door of com- 
munication between our quarters and those of the company. — Author's 
Note. 

52 



THE FIRE AT MOSCOW 

October ist to plunder a large country-house some leagues 
from Moscow. We found very little — only a cart loaded 
with hay. As we returned, we met some Russian cavalry, 
who began caracoling round us without meaning to attack 
us seriously. We marched, however, in such a way as to 
show them that the advantage would not be theirs, for, 
although far fewer in numbers than they were, we had 
disabled several of them. They followed us to within a 
quarter of a league of Moscow. 

On the 2nd we heard that the Emperor had given 
orders to arm the Kremlin ; thirty pieces of cannon and 
howitzers of various calibre were to be placed on all the 
towers round the outside wall. The men on extra duty 
of every regiment of the Guard were commanded on the 
3rd to dig and carry away all the materials coming from the 
old walls round the Kremlin, which the sapper-engineers 
had demolished, and all foundations which had been 
undermined. 

On the 4th I went in my turn with the extra-duty men 
of our company ; the next day the Colonel of the Engineers 
was killed close to me, by a brick from a mine just exploded. 
On the same day I saw near a church several dead bodies 
with the legs or arms eaten away, probably by wolves or 
dogs. 

On the days off duty we drank, smoked, and laughed, 
talking of France and the distance separating it from us, 
and the possibility of being sent still farther off. When 
evening came, we invited our Muscovite slaves to join us 
(or, rather, our two Marquises, as we called them since the 
night of the ball), and we sat drinking Jamaica rum-punch. 

The remainder of our stay in the town was passed in 
reviews and parades, up to the day when a courier came 
to inform the Emperor, in the middle of a review, that the 
Russians had broken the armistice, and had taken Murat's 

S3 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

cavalry by surprise. The order to leave was therefore 
given, and the whole army was in instant movement ; 
but our regiment only knew in the evening that we had 
orders to leave the next day. We gave the Muscovite 
women and the two tailors their share of the booty which 
we could not carry away. They threw themselves on the 
ground to kiss our feet twenty times — never had they 
imagined -such riches. 



54 



CHAPTER IIL 

THE RETREAT — REVIEW OF MY KNAPSACK THE EMPEROR IN 

DANGER FROM MOJAISK TO SLAWKOWO. 

During the evening of October i8th, when, according to 
our daily custom, several non-commissioned officers were 
assembled together, stretched at full length like pashas 
on ermine, sable, lion and bear skins, smoking costly 
tobacco in magnificent pipes, an enormous silver bowl 
filled with punch before us, above which a huge loaf of 
sugar was melting, held in its place by two Russian 
bayonets — just as we were talking of France and of the 
glory of returning there as conquerors after so long an ab- 
sence, just as we were composing farewells and promises of 
fidelity to our female Mongol, Chinese, and Indian friends — 
we heard a tremendous noise in the large room where the 
soldiers of our company slept. And who should enter but 
the Quarter-master with the announcement that w^e must 
hold ourselves in readiness to leave. The next day (the 19th) 
the town was filled with Jews and Russian peasants — the 
first-named to buy of the soldiers what they could not 
carry away, the last to pick up what we threw into the 
streets. We heard that Marshal Mortier was to remain 
at the Kremlin with 10,000 men to defend if neces- 
sary. 

We set out in the afternoon, packing some liquor from 

55 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

our stores on Mother Dubois's cart, as well as our large 
silver bowl ; it was almost dark when we got outside the 
town. We found ourselves amongst a great number of 
carts and waggons, driven by men of every nationality, three 
or four in a line, and stretching for the length of a league. 
We heard all round us French, German, Spanish, Italian, 
Portuguese, and other languages also, for there were 
Muscovite peasants among them, and a great number of 
Jews. This crowd of people, with their varied costumes 
and languages, the canteen masters with their wives and 
crying children, hurried forward in the most unheard of 
noise, tumult and disorder. Some had got their carts all 
smashed, and in consequence yelled and swore enough to 
drive one mad. This was the convoy of the whole army, 
and we had a great deal of trouble in getting past it. We 
marched by the Kalonga road (we were then in Asia) ; soon 
we stopped to bivouac in a wood for the rest of the night. 
As the hour was already far advanced, we had not long to 
rest. 

We resumed our march at dawn, but before we had 
gone a league we again met a large part of the fatal 
convoy, which had passed us while we were asleep. Most 
of the carts were already shattered, and others could not 
move, the wheels sinking deep in the sandy road. We 
could hear screams in French, oaths in German, entreaties 
to the Almighty in Italian, and to the Holy Virgin in 
Spanish and Portuguese. 

After getting past this babel we were forced to wait for 
the left of the column. I spent the time in making an 
examination of my knapsack, which seemed too heavy. I 
found several pounds of sugar, some rice, some biscuit, 
half a bottle of liqueur, a woman's Chinese silk dress, 
embroidered in gold and silver, several gold and silver 
ornaments, amongst them a little bit of the cross of Ivan 

56 



REVIEW OF MY KNAPSACK 

the Great* — at least, a piece of the outer covering of silver 
gilt, given me by a man in the company who had helped 
in taking it down. Besides these, I had my uniform, a 
woman's large riding-cloak (hazel colour, lined with green 
velvet ; as I could not guess how it was worn, I imagined 
its late owner to be more than six feet high) : then two 
silver pictures in relief, a foot long and eight inches high ; 
one of them represented the Judgment of Paris on Mount 
Ida, the other showed Neptune on a chariot formed by a 
shell and drawn by sea-horses, all in the finest workman- 
ship. I had, besides, several lockets and a Russian Prince's 
spittoon set with brilliants. These things were intended 
for presents, and had been found in cellars where the houses 
were burnt down. 

No wonder the knapsack was so weighty ! to lighten it, 
therefore, I left out my white trousers, feeling pretty 
certain I should not want them again just yet. I wore 
over my shirt a yellow silk waistcoat, wadded inside, which 
I had made myself out of a woman's skirt ; above that a 
large cape lined with ermine, and a large pouch hung at 
my side, underneath the cape, by a silver cord. This was 
full of various things — amongst them, a crucifix in gold and 
silver, and a little Chinese porcelain vase. These objects 
seemed to have escaped the general ruin by a sort of 
miracle, and I still keep them as relics. Then there were 
my powder-flask, my fire-arms, and sixteen cartridges in 
my cartridge-case. Add to all this a fair amount of health, 
good spirits, and the hope of presenting my respects to 
the Mongol, Chinese and Indian ladies I hoped to meet, 
and you will have a very good idea of the Velite sergeant of 
the Imperial Guard. 

* I forgot to say that in the middle of the large cross of Ivan the 
Great was a small one in solid gold about a foot long. — Author's 
Note. 

57 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

I had scarcely finished reviewing my treasures*, when in 
front of us we heard a report of fire-arms : we were 
ordered to set off in double-quick time. We arrived half 
an hour afterwards at the place where part of the convoy, 
escorted by a detachment of red Lancers of the Guard, had 
been attacked by partisans. Several of the lancers were 
killed, also some Russians and many horses. Near a cart 
was a pretty woman, stretched on her back on the ground, 
killed by the shock. We marched on by a fairly good 
road, and stopped in the evening to bivouac in a wood. 

Early the next morning we resumed our march, and 
met at noon a party of Cossacks of the regular army. 
The artillery made short work of them. We marched for 
most of this day over fields, and at night encamped on the 
banks of a stream. 

There was rain on the 22nd, and it was slow and difficult 
walking all day. In the evening we posted ourselves near 
a wood. During the night we heard a loud explosion. 
Afterwards we discovered that Marshal Mortier had blown 
up the Kremlin, putting a great quantity of powder in the 
cellars. He left Moscow three days after we did with 
his 10,000 men. Two of the regiments were the Young 
Guard, which we met on the road to Mojaisk a few days 
afterwards. For the rest of the day we got on very slowly, 
although we were marching all the time. 

On the 24th we found we were near Kalonga, and that 
same day, at Malo-Jaroslawetz, the army of Italy, com- 
manded by Prince Eugene, engaged the Russian army, 
which was endeavouring to prevent our passage. In this 
bloody struggle 16,000 of our men met 70,000 Russians. 
The Russians lost 8,000 men, and we 3,000. Many of 

* On account of the Continental blockade, a rumour ran through 
the army that we were to penetrate into MongoHa and China, and 
seize the English possessions there. — Author's Note. 

58 



THE EMPEROR IN DANCilCR 

our superior officers were killed and wounded — amonf;st 
tlicin Cicneral Dclzous, struck on the forehead by a 
hall. His brother, a Colonel, in trying; to save him, 
was himself shot, and both died together on the same 
spot. 

Onthe25th I hadbeenon guard since the previous evening 
near a little house where the ICmperor had s})ent tin- night. 
There was a thick fog, as there often is in October. All 
at once, without informing anyone, the Emperor mounted 
his horse, merely followed by some orderly officers. He 
had scarcely gone, when we heard a great noise. Just at 
first we supposed it to be cries of ' Vive I'Empereur !' but 
then we heard the order * Aux armesl' — 'To arms!' Six 
thousand Cossacks, commanded by Platoff, had come to 
surprise us, favoured by the fog and the deep ravines. 
The squadrons of the Guard on duty llcw across the plain. 
We followed them, crossing a ravine to make a short-cut. 
We found ourselves directly in front of this host of savages, 
who howled like wolves as they drew back. Our squadrons 
came up with them, recaptured what they had taken of 
our baggage and waggons, ajjd inllicted heavy losses on 
them. 

When we got to the plain, we saw that the Emperor 
was in the midst of the Cossacks, surrounded by Generals 
and by his orderly officers, one of whom was dangerously 
wounded through a fatal mistake. Just as the squadrons 
arrived on the plain, many of the officers, for their own 
defence and that of the Emperor, who had nearly been taken 
in the midst of them, had been obliged to use their swords 
against the Cossacks. One of the orderly officers dropped 
his hat and his sword after killing and wounding several 
of the Cossacks ; so, finding himself defenceless, he threw 
himself on a Cossack, and took his lance from him. Just 
at that moment a mounted Grenadier of the Guard caught 

59 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

sight of him, and, thinking from his green cloak and his 
lance that he was a Cossack, rushed at him, and ran him 
through the body. 

The unhappy Grenadier, on seeing his mistake, en- 
deavoured to get killed. He flung himself amongst the 
enemy, striking to right and left, but everj^one fled before 
him. After killing several men, without being able to die 
himself, he returned, alone and covered with blood, to ask 
after the officer he had wounded. Fortunately he recovered, 
and was taken back to France in a sledge. 

I remember that, just after this incident, the Emperor 
was talking to Murat, laughing at the narrow escape he 
had had of being taken. Monfort, the Grenadier-velite 
from Valenciennes, again distinguished himself, killing and 
wounding many Cossacks. 

We waited for some time longer in this place, and then 
resumed our march, leaving Kalonga on the left. We 
crossed a muddy river by a verj' bad bridge, and took the 
direction of iSIojaisk. It began to freeze during the night. 

On the 28th we started verj^ early, and during the day, 
after passing over a little river, we arrived at the famous 
battlefield (the Moskowa), covered all over with the dead, 
and with debris of all kinds. Legs, arms, and heads lay 
on the ground. Most of the bodies were Russians, as ours 
had been buried, as far as possible ; but, as ever3d;hing had 
been ver^' hastily done, the hea\y rain had uncovered many 
of them. It was a sad spectacle, the dead bodies hardly 
retaining a human resemblance. The battle had been 
fought fifty-two days before. 

Further on we fixed our bivouac, passing on our way 
the great redoubt where General Caulaincourt had been 
killed and buried. We sheltered ourselves as well as we 
could, and made a fire with broken remains of rifles, carts, 
gun-carriages. We had no water, however, for the little 

60 



FROM MOJAISK TO SLAWKOWO 

stream flowing near was full of decaying bodies. We had 
to go a quarter of a league to find any fit for drinking. 
When we had everything settled, I went with a friend* to 
explore the battlefield ; we went as far as the ravine where 
Murat had pitched his tents. 

On that same day a report went round that a French 
Grenadiei had been found still living on the battlefield. 
He had both his legs cut off, and was sheltered by the 
body of a horse, whose flesh he had eaten to keep himself 
alive. His drink was the water from the stream full of 
the dead bodies of "his comrades. I heard that he was 
saved — and no doubt for the time it was true — but after- 
wards he would be left behind, like so many others. That 
evening many whose store of provisions had come to an 
end began to feel hunger. Up till then everyone con- 
tributed his share of flour for the soup ; but now, seeing 
that some did not contribute, men began to hide what 
they had to keep it for themselves. The soup made out of 
horseflesh — which we had eaten for the last few days — 
was all we had to eat in common. 

On the following day we passed near a convent, used as 
a hospital for many of our wounded in the great battle. 
Many of them were still there, and the Emperor gave 
orders for them to be taken away on any of the carts, 
beginning with his own ; but the canteen men, who had 
the care of these unfortunate people, left them for one 
pretext or another on the road, in order to keep all the 
booty they had brought from Moscow, which filled their 
carts. 

We slept that night in a wood behind Ghjat, where the 
Emperor stayed. Snow fell for the first time during the 
night. 

The next day (the 30th) the road had become ver}- 

* Grangier, a sergeant. — A lit/tor's Note. 
61 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

heavy, and many carts laden with booty had the greatest 
difficulty in getting along. Several were damaged, and 
others were lightened by throwing away useless parts of 
the load. I was that day in the rear-guard, and could see 
from the extreme rear of the column the beginning of the 
frightful disorder that followed. The road was heaped 
with valuable things — pictures, candlesticks, and quantities 
of books. For more than an hour I was picking up 
volumes, which I glanced through, and then threw down 
again, to be taken up by others, who in their turn left 
them on the road — books such as Voltaire, Jean Jacques 
Rousseau, and Buffon's ' Natural History,' bound in red 
morocco and gold. 

I had the good fortune that day to obtain a bearskin 
coat found by a man in our company in a broken-up waggon. 
On the same day our cantiniere lost her cart containing our 
provisions, and our beautiful silver punch-bowl of so many 
pleasant memories. 

On the 30th we got to Viasma — called by our men 
Ville au Schnaps, on account of all the brandy they had 
found there on going to Moscow. The Emperor stopped 
here, but our regiment went forward. 

I forgot to say that before arriving at this town we made 
a halt, and while I was resting near a little pine wood I 
met a sergeant in the Chasseurs of the Guard, whom I 
knew.* He had taken advantage of a ready-made fire to 
cook a potful of rice, and invited me to share it. He 
had with him a cantiniere of the regiment — a Hungarian. 
They were the best friends possible. She still had her 
cart with two horses intact, well filled with provisions, 
furs, and silver. I stayed for more than an hour with 
them. While I was there a non-commissioned Portuguese 

* This man's name was Guinard ; he was a native of Condd — 

Author's Note. 

62 



FROM MOJAISK TO SLAWKOWO 

officer came up to warm himself at our fire. I asked him 
where his regiment was, and he rephed that it was dis- 
persed, but that he, with a detachment, was under orders 
to escort seven or eight hundred Russian prisoners. They 
had no food, and were reduced to eating each other. 
Literally, when one of them died, he was cut up and 
divided between them, and afterwards eaten. He offered 
to let me see for myself — this I refused. This took place 
not a hundred yards from our resting-place. We learnt 
some days afterwards, that, having no food for the rest, 
they had been abandoned. 

The sergeant and cantiniere of whom I spoke afterwards 
lost everything they had at Wilna, and were both taken 
prisoners. 

On November ist we slept near a wood, as we had done 
the preceding night. For the last few days we had nothing 
but horseflesh to eat. The few provisions we had brought 
from Moscow were all gone, and now, with the cold weather, 
our real miseries began. I had saved a little rice for myself, 
which I meant to keep for a great pinch, foreseeing much 
greater hardship in the future. 

I was in the rear-guard again to-day. We were all 
non-commissioned officers, as many of the men stayed 
behind to rest and warm themselves at the fires made by 
those in front. As I walked, I saw to my right several 
men from different regiments round a large fire. The 
Adjutant-Major sent me to tell them to follow, and when 
I got near them I recognised Flament, a Dragoon-velite. 
He was cooking a piece of horseflesh on the point of his 
sword, and invited me to join him. I asked him to follow 
the column. He said that he would come as soon as he 
had finished his meal, but that he was unfortunately 
obliged to walk in his riding-boots, as in an encounter 
with the Cossacks the day before his horse had strained 

6^ 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

himself, and he was forced to lead the animal. Luckily, I 
was able to give Flament a pair of shoes, so that he could 
walk like a foot soldier, and said good-bye to him, little 
thinking that I was not to see him again. Two days after- 
wards he was killed near a wood, just as he and some 
other stragglers were lighting a fire to rest themselves. 

On the 2nd, before getting to Slawkowo, we saw close 
to the road a blockhaus, or military station — a kind of large 
fortified shed, filled with men from different regiments, 
and many wounded. All those who could follow us did 
so, and the slightly wounded were placed, as many as 
possible, in our carts. Those more seriously wounded 
were left, with their surgeons and doctors, to the mercy 
of the enemy. 



CHAPTER IV. 

DOROGOBOUI — VERMIN — A CANTINIERE — HUNGER. 

On the 3rd we stayed at Slawkowo, and saw Russians to 
the right of us all the day. The other regiments of the 
Guard, who had remained behind, now joined us. We 
made a forced inarch on the 4th to reach Dorogoboui, 
the ' cabbage town.' We gave it this name on account 
of the vast number of cabbages we found there on going 
to Moscow. This was also the place where the Emperor 
settled the number of artillery and rifle-shots to be fired 
in the great battle. By seven in the evening we were 
still two leagues from the town, but the depth of the snow 
made marching exceedingly difficult. It was with infinite 
labour we got so far, and for a short time we lost our 
way. 

It was quite eleven o'clock before we made our bivouac. 
Amongst the debris from the houses (for this town had 
been almost burned down, like so many others), we found 
wood enough to make fires and get thoroughly warm. 
But we had nothing to eat, and we were so horribly tired 
that we had not the strength to go and look for a horse, 
so we lay down to rest instead. One of the men in the 
company brought me some rush matting to make a bed, 
and with my head on my knapsack, my feet to the fire, I 
went to sleep. 

65 F 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

I had slept for about an hour, when I felt an unbearable 
tingling over the whole of my body. Mechanically I passed 
my hand over my chest and other parts of my body, and to 
my horror discovered that I was covered with vermin ! I 
jumped up, and in less than two minutes was as naked as 
a new-born babe, having thrown my shirt and trousers 
into the fire. The crackling they made was like a brisk 
firing, and my mind was so full of what I w^as doing that 
I never noticed the large flakes of snow falling all over 
me. I shook the rest of my clothes over the fire, and put 
on my only remaining shirt and pair of trousers ; and, 
feeling miserable almost to the point of tears, I sat on 
my knapsack, covered with my bearskin, and, my head in 
my hands, spent the rest of the night as far as possible 
from the cursed rush matting on which I had slept. The 
men who took my place caught nothing, so I suppose I 
monopolized them all. 

Early the next morning we set out (November 5th). 
Before leaving, a distribution of hand-mills was made in 
every regiment of the Guard, in case of finding any corn 
to grind ; but as we found none, and the mills were very 
heavy, we got rid of them before twenty-four hours were 
over. This was a sad day — so many of our sick and 
wounded died. Up till now they had made superhuman 
efforts in the hope of reaching Smolensk and finding food 
and shelter. 

In the evening we stopped near a wood, and the order 
was given to make shelters for the night. Just afterwards 
our cantiniere, Madame Dubois, the regimental barber's 
wife, was taken ill, and in the midst of the falling snow, 
with twenty degrees of frost, i.e., about ten below zero, 
she was delivered of a fine boy — a miserable position for 
the poor woman. Colonel Bodel, who commanded our 
regiment, did all he possibly could to make her comfort- 

66 



A CANTINIERE 

able, lending his cloak to cover the shelter where she lay. 
Madame Dubois bore her pain and discomfort bravely ; 
the surgeon did his best, and all ended happily. That 
same night our men killed a white bear, which was eaten 
at once. After spending a miserable night, on account 
of the fearful cold, we set out again. The Colonel lent 
Madame Dubois his horse. She held her new-born infant 
wrapped in a sheepskin in her arms, and she herself wore 
the cloaks of two men who had died during the night. 

There was a dense fog that day, November 6th, and more 
than twenty-two degrees of frost. Our lips were frozen, 
our brains too ; the whole atmosphere was icy. There 
was a fearful wind, and the snow fell in enormous flakes. 
We lost sight not only of the sky, but of the men in front 
of us. As we approached a wretched village,* a horseman 
came at full speed, asking for the Emperor. We heard 
afterwards that it was a General bringing news of Malet's 
conspiracy in Paris. 

We w^re just then packed very closely together near a 
wood, and had a long time to wait before we could resume 
our march, as the road was narrow. As several of us sat 
together beating with our feet to keep warm, and talking 
of the fearful hunger we felt, all at once I became aware 
of the smell of warm bread. I turned round and behind 
me saw a man wrapped in a great fur cape, from which 
came the smell I had noticed. I spoke to him at once, 
saying, ' Sir, you haVe some bread ; you must sell it to 
me.' As he moved away, I caught him by the arm, and, 
seeing that he could not get rid of me, he drew out from 
under his cloak a cake still warm. With one hand I seized 
the cake, while with the other I gave him five francs. But 
hardly had I the cake in my hand, when my companions 

■**■ The name of the village was Mickalowka. — Author's Note. 

67 F— 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

threw themselves on it hke madmen, and tore it from me. 
I only had the little bit I held between my thumb and two 
first fingers. 

While this was going on, the Surgeon-Major (for it was 
he) went off, and well for him he did so, as he might have 
been killed for the sake of the rest of the cake. He had 
probably found some flour in the village, and had had 
time to make the cake while waiting for us. 

During this half-hour several men had lain down and 
died ; many more had fallen in the column while marching. 
Our ranks were getting thinned already, and this was 
only the very beginning of our troubles. Whenever we 
stopped to eat hastily, the horses left behind were bled. 
The blood was caught in a saucepan, cooked, and eaten. 
But often we were forced to eat it before there was time to 
cook it. Either the order for departure was given, or the 
Russians were upon us. In the latter case we did not 
take much notice. I have sometimes seen men eating 
calmly, while others fired at the Russians to keep them 
off. But when the order was imperative and we were 
obliged to go, the saucepan was carried with us, and each 
man, as he marched, dipped his hands in and took what 
he wanted ; his face in consequence became smeared with 
blood. 

Very often we were obliged to leave the horses, for want 
of time to cut them up, and men would drop behind and 
hide themselves for fear of being forced to follow their 
regiments. Then they would throw themselves on the 
meat like vultures. These men seldom reappeared ; they 
were either taken by the enemy or they died of cold. 

This day's march was not so long as the preceding one ; 
it was still daylight when we stopped. A village had 
been burnt down, and only a few rafters here and there 
remained. The officers encamped against these for the 

68 



HUNGER 

night, getting a little shelter this way. Besides the fearful 
pains we felt all over through our great fatigue, we were 
by this time quite famishing. Those of us who still had a 
little rice or oatmeal, hid themselves to eat it in secret. 
We had no friends left ; we looked suspiciously at each 
other, and even turned against our best comrade. I will 
not keep back a base act of ingratitude I committed 
against my truest friends. Like everyone else that day I 
was devoured by hunger ; but besides that, I was also 
devoured by vermin I had got the previous day. We had 
not even a bit of horseflesh to eat, and we were waiting 
for some men of our company to come up who had stayed 
behind to cut up the fallen horses. I was standing near 
one of my friends, Poumot, a sergeant, close to a fire we had 
made, in quite indescribable torment, and looking round 
continually to see if no one was coming. Suddenly I 
seized his hand convulsively, and said : 

* Look here : if I met anyone in the wood with a loaf of 
bread, I should force him to give me half!' And then, 
correcting myself, ' No,' I said, * I would kill him to have 
it all !' 

Almost before I had finished I strode off towards the 
v/ood, just as if I expected to meet the man and the loaf. 
When I got there, I roamed about for a quarter of an hour, 
and then, turning in the opposite direction from our bivouac, 
close by the borders of the wood, I saw a man seated near 
a fire. On the fire was a pot in which something was 
evidently cooking, as the man took a knife and, plung- 
ing it into the pot, drew out a potato, which he pinched, 
and then put back again, as if it were not boiled 
enough. 

I ran towards him as hard as I could, but fearing that 
he might escape me, I made a little circuit, so as to come 
up behind him without his seeing me. The brushwood 

69 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

crackled, however, as I came through, and he turned 
round ; but before he had time to speak, I said : 

' Look here, comrade : you must either sell or give me 
your potatoes, or I shall carry away the pot by force V 

He seemed quite taken by surprise, and as I put out my 
sword to fish with it in the pot, he said it did not belong 
to him, but to his master, a Polish General, who was 
camping close by, and that he had been ordered to hide 
himself here to cook the potatoes ready for the next day. 

Without answering him, I offered him money, and 
began to take the potatoes. He told me they were not 
boiled enough yet, and as I seemed not to believe him, he 
took one out for me to feel. I tore it from him, and 
devoured it just as it was. 

' They are not fit to eat — you can see that for yourself,' 
he said ; ' hide yourself for a little while, try to be patient, 
and don't let anyone see you till the potatoes are boiled, 
and then I will give you some.' 

I did as he bade me, hiding behind a bush, but not 
losing sight of him. After about five or six minutes, 
thinking no doubt that I was some distance off, he looked 
stealthily to right and left, and taking the pot, he ran off 
with it. Not far, however, as I soon stopped him, and 
threatened to take the whole if he did not give me half. 
He said again that the potatoes belonged to his General. 

' I must have them if they are the Emperor's,' I cried. 
' I am dying of hunger.' 

Seeing he could not get rid of me, he gave me seven. 
I paid him fifteen francs, and left him. He then called 
me back, and gave me two more. They were hardly 
cooked at all, but that did not matter much to me. I ate 
one, and put the rest in my bag. I reckoned that, with a 
little horseflesh, they would last me for three days, allowing 
two each day. 

70 



POTATOES 

As I walked on, thinking of my potatoes, I lost my way. 
I was made aware of this by hearing cries and curses from 
five men, who were fighting like dogs ; the leg of a horse 
on the ground was the cause of the disturbance. One of 
them, on seeing me, told me that he and his companion, 
both artillery soldiers, had killed a horse behind the wood, 
and that, on returning with their portion, they had been 
attacked by three men of another regiment. If I would 
help them they would give me a share. I feared the same 
sort of fate for my potatoes, so I replied that I could not 
wait, but that if they could hold on for a little I would 
send some people to help them. A little further on I met 
two men in our regiment to whom I told the story. The 
next day I heard that when they got to the place they 
only saw a man lying dead, covered with blood, killed by 
a great pine cudgel at his side. Probably the three 
aggressors bad taken advantage of the absence of one of 
their enemies to fall on the other. 

When at length I got back to my regiment, several of 
the men asked me if I had found anything. I answered 
' No,' and, taking my place near the fire, I hollowed out a 
bed in the snow, stretched my bearskin coat to lie on, a 
cape lined with ermine for my head. Before going to sleep, 
I had my potato to eat. Hiding it by my cape, I was as 
quiet as possible, terrified leet anyone should observe that 
I was eating. I had a little snow for drink, and then went 
to sleep, holding my bag containing the rest of my pro- 
visions fast in my arms. Several times in the night, as I 
woke, I put in my hand, carefully counting my potatoes ; 
so I passed the night without sharing with my starving 
companions the bit of luck I had had. I shall never forgive 
myself for this selfishness. I was awake and sitting on 
my knapsack before the reveille sounded in the morning. 
I saw that a terrible day was in store for us, on account 

71 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

of the high wind. I made a hole in my bearskin coat, 
and put my head through it. The bear's head fell over 
my chest, and the rest over my back, but it was so long 
that it dragged on the ground. Before dawn we set out. 
We left behind us an enormous number of dead and dying. 
Further on it was worse still, as we had to stride over the 
dead bodies left on the road by the regiments going before 
us. It was worst of all for the rear-guard, as these were 
witnesses of all the horrors left by the whole army. The 
last corps were those commanded by Marshal Ney and 
Davoust, and the army of Italy under Prince Eugene. 
Daylight appeared when we had been marching for about 
an hour, and, as we had come up with the corps in front 
of us, we halted. Our cantiniere, Mother Dubois, took 
advantage of the halt to feed her baby, when suddenly we 
heard a cry of anguish. The infant was dead, and as stiff 
as a piece of wood. Those nearest to her tried to comfort 
her by saying that it was the best thing both for the baby 
and herself, and, in spite of her cries and tears, they took 
the infant from her breast. They gave it to a sapper, who, 
with the child's father, went a short distance from the 
road. The sapper dug a hole in the snow, the father on 
his knees holding the child in his arms. When the grave 
was made, he kissed the baby, and placed it in its tomb. 
It was covered with snow, and all was at an end. 

We stopped an hour later for a long halt at the edge of 
a wood. Here a large party of artillery and cavalry had 
encamped, for we found a great many dead horses, some 
of them cut in pieces. There were many more still living, 
though numbed, standing still to be killed ; those that had 
died during the night were frozen so hard that it was im- 
possible to cut the flesh. During this disastrous march I 
noticed that we were always placed as much as possible 
behind the cavalry and artillery ; so that when we halted 

73 



STARVATION 

where they had passed the night, the horses they had left 
behind were ready for us. 

While we were all resting, and each busy in arranging 
some fearful meal for himself, I retired furtively into the 
thickest part of the wood to eat the potatoes I had hidden 
so carefully. But a fearful disappointment was in store 
for me. When I tried to bite, I felt nothing but ice ; my 
teeth slipped, and I could not get hold of a bit. I was 
sorry then that I had not shared the potatoes with the 
others, and I went back to them, holding in my hand the 
frozen one, covered with blood from my lips. They asked 
me what I had got, and I silently showed them the potato 
I held, and the others in my bag. They were snatched 
instantly from mq ; but the result, when they tried to bite, 
was no better than mine. They tried to thaw them at the 
fire, but they melted away like ice. While this was going 
on, other men came up to ask me where I had found the 
potatoes, and when I pointed to the wood they ran there, 
returning to say they had found nothing. They were very 
good to me, as they invited me to share a potful of horse's 
blood which they had cooked. I did not need two invita- 
tions. I have always felt very sorry for behaving as I did. 
The men believed that I found the potatoes in the wood, 
and I did not undeceive them. But all this is only a 
hundredth part of what came afterwards. 

After an hour's rest we set out again, crossing a wood, 
where every now and then we came on open spaces, with 
houses in them occupied by Jews. Some of them are large, 
and built very much like our barns, only of wood. At each 
end is a large door. These houses take the place of posting 
houses. A carriage is taken in at one end, and, after 
changing horses, goes out at the other. The houses are 
built about three leagues apart ; but most of them had dis- 
appeared, having been burnt at the army's first passage. 

73 



CHAPTER V. 

A DISASTER — A FAMILY DRAMA — MARSHAL MORTIER — TWENTY- 
SEVEN DEGREES OF FROST — WE REACH SMOLENSK A DEN 

OF THIEVES. 

When we got out of the wood, near to a miserable little 
hamlet called Gara, I saw, a short distance off, one of the 
posting-houses I have been describing. I pointed it out 
to one of our sergeants, an Alsatian called Mather, and 
suggested to him that we should spend the night there, if 
we could possibly manage to get there first. We set off 
running, but found on arriving that it was crammed full 
with officers, men, and horses — about 800 people being 
there — so that there was not an inch of room for us. 

While we were running, first one way and then another, 
trying to find places, the Imperial column and our own 
regiment passed, so we decided to spend the night under 
the horses tied up to the doors. Those who were camped 
round the house repeatedly tried to pull it down to make 
fires and shelters with the wood, and to get hold of the 
straw lying in a sort of loft. Some of this straw was used 
for beds by those inside the house, and, tightly packed 
though they were, they even made small fires to warm 
themselves and cook their horseflesh. They threatened to 
shoot those outside who tried to pull up the planks of the 
house. Some who had got on the roof, and had torn off 

74 



A DISASTER 

planks, were forced to jump down in danger of their 
lives. 

It might have been perhaps eleven o'clock at night. 
Some of the unfortunate men were asleep, others were 
warming their limbs at the fire, when we heard an in- 
distinct noise behind us. Fire had broken out in two 
places — in the centre and at the other end of the barn. 
When we tried to open the doors, the horses fastened to 
the inside reared and prevented our passing. It was im- 
possible to get to the other door for the smoke and flames. 

The confusion was supreme. The men from the further 
side of the barn threw themselves in a compact mass 
against the inside of the door near where we slept, to 
prevent others from getting in. To do this more effectually, 
they had fixed the door firmly with a cross-bar of wood. 
In less than two minutes the whole place was in flames; 
the fire had begun in the straw where the men slept, and 
rapidly spread to the dry beams above their heads. Some 
men near the door tried to open it, but failed, as it opened 
inwards. A terrible scene, impossible to describe, took 
place ; smothered groans and terrible shrieks were heard 
from the building. The unfortunate wretches inside 
climbed one upon the other, endeavouring to get out 
through the roof; but flames were already issuing through 
the holes there, and no sooner did the men appear, their 
clothes on fire, and the hair burnt off their heads, than 
they were driven back again by the force of the fire. 

Then cries and shrieks of rage were heard, the fire 
became a vast tossing mass, through the convulsive efforts 
the poor wretches made to escape. It was the picture of hell. 

We saved seven men by dragging them through a hole 
made by a plank torn from its place. One of them was 
an officer of our regiment. His hands were burnt and 
his clothes torn, and the other six were worse off still. It 

75 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

was impossible to save any more in this way, as the others 
were already half suffocated by the smoke, and by the 
weight of other men on the top of them ; we had to leave 
them to be burnt with the rest. Some few flung themselves 
off the roof, and begged us to finish them off by shooting 
them. 

Other men who were camping near, half dead with cold 
by their wretched fires, now came running up, attracted 
by the light of the flames. They came, not to offer help — 
they were too late for that — but to warm themselves, and 
cook their horseflesh on the points of their swords and 
bayonets. In their opinion, the disaster was an interven- 
tion of Providence, as the men burnt in the barn were the 
richest in the army, having brought away more treasure 
than any others from Moscow. In spite of their hunger 
and weakness, we saw men running the risk of the flames 
to drag out the bodies of their wretched comrades, in order 
to hunt for what they could find. Others said, ' It serves 
them right ; if they had let us get on to the roof, this 
would not have happened.' Others, again, stretched out 
their hands to the warmth, saying, 'What a beautiful fire!' 
regardless of the fact that several hundreds of their 
comrades, perhaps even of their relatives, had given their 
bodies to feed the flames. 

Before the dawn, I set out with my companion to rejoin 
the regiment. We walked on, thinking of all that had 
passed, stumbling over dead and dying men. The cold 
was even more intense than on the day before. We joined 
two men of the line who had their teeth in a bit of horse- 
flesh. They said, if they waited any longer, it would be 
frozen too hard to eat. They assured us as a fact that 
they had seen foreign soldiers (Croats) of our army 
dragging corpses out of the fire, cutting them up and 
eating them. I never saw this sort of thing myself, but 

76 



A FAMILY DRAMA 

I believe it frequently happened during this fatal cam- 
paign. 

What object could these men have, almost dying as 
they were, in telling us this story, if it were not true ? It 
was not an occasion for lying. I am sure that if I had not 
found any horseflesh myself, I could have turned cannibal. 
To understand the situation, one must have felt the 
madness of hunger ; failing a man to eat, one could have 
demolished the devil himself, if he were only cooked. 

Since we left Moscow, a pretty Russian carriage drawn 
by four horses had followed the Guards' column. For 
the last two days, however, we only saw two ; the others 
had either been killed and eaten, or had died of the cold 
and fatigue. In the carriage was a lady, probably a widow, 
still young, with her two daughters, of seventeen and fifteen 
years of age. They were from Moscow, of French origin, and 
had yielded to the entreaties of one of our superior officers 
to accompany him to France. Perhaps the officer intended 
to marry the lady, for he was no longer very young. Be 
that as it may, these unhappy ladies were, like us, exposed 
to the terrible cold, and to all the miseries of hunger and 
want, feeling it, no doubt, far more keenly than we did. 

The day was breaking when we got to the place where 
our regiment had slept, and the army was already in motion. 
During the last two days the regiments were diminished 
by a third of their number, and it was only too evident, 
from the slow, painful progress of many of the men, that 
they would succumb before the day was over. I saw the 
carriage containing the unfortunate ladies emerge from a 
little wood on to the highroad ; there it stopped close to 
me, and I heard cries and groans proceeding from it. 
The officer in charge of the ladies opened the door, got 
into the carriage, and presently lifted out a dead body to 
the sappers waiting outside. One of the poor girls had 

n 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

just died. She was dressed in gray silk, with a cape of the 
same colour trimmed with ermine. She was still beautiful, 
but very thin. We were all very much touched at this 
sight, in spite of our usual indifference to tragic scenes, 
and when I saw the officer in tears, I wept also. 

As the sappers took the girl's body away, I glanced into 
the carriage, and there I saw the mother and the other 
girl fallen one over the other. They seemed to be quite 
unconscious, and. indeed, their sufferings were ended that 
evening. I think they were all three buried by the sappers 
in the same grave, near Valoutina. The Lieutenant-Colonel, 
reproaching himself for this misfortune, tried at Krasnoe 
and other battles to meet his death ; and in January, a 
few days after our arrival at Elbingen, he died of grief. 

This day (November 8th) was a terrible one. We were 
late at our halting-place, and, as we were supposed to 
reach Smolensk the following da}-, the hope of getting 
food and rest, and the rumour that we were to go into 
cantonments there, inspired many of our men to super- 
human exertions, in spite of the frightful cold and every 
kind of privation. 

Before reaching the place for bivouac, we had to cross 
a deep ravine and climb a hill. Some artillerymen pf 
the Guard had stopped in the ravine with their guns, 
quite unable to get up the hill. The horses were entirely 
spent, and the men's strength gone. They were accompanied 
by some gunners of the King of Prussia's Guard ; they had 
been through the campaign with us, attached to our artillery 
as a Prussian contingent. They had made their bivouacs 
by the side of their guns, lighting their fires as best they 
could, and hoping to continue their way in the morning. 
Our regiment and the Chasseurs w'ere on the right of the 
road. I believe these were the heights of Valoutina, where 
a battle had been fought on August igth that same year. 

r8 



MARSHAL MORTIER 

I was on guard at Marshal Mortier's. His quarters 
were a barn without a roof. A hasty shelter had been 
put up, however, to keep out the snow and cold as much 
as possible. Our Colonel and the Adjutant- Major were 
there also. We tore some wood off the fence to make a 
little fire for the Marshal, at which we could all warm 
ourselves. We had hardly settled down to cook a piece 
of horseflesh, when a man appeared, his head tied up in 
a handkerchief, his hands swathed in rags, and his clothes 
burnt. He cried out as he came up : 

' Ah, Colonel, how miserable I am ! I am suffering 
terribly !' 

The Colonel turned round, asking him who he was, 
where he came from, and what was the matter with him. 

' Ah, Colonel,' he said, * I have lost everything, and I 
am frightfully burnt.' 

The Colonel then recognised him, and said : 

* That was your own fault ; you should have kept with 
the regiment. You have disappeared for several days. 
What have you been doing ? You ought to have shown 
an example, and been ready, like us, to die at your post. 
Do you understand, sir ?' 

But the poor devil did not hear or understand, and this 
was not the right time to lecture. The man was the 
officer we had saved from the fire at the barn, and who 
was supposed to possess a great many gold and precious 
things taken at Moscow. He had lost everything, how- 
ever ; his horse and his belongings had all gone. The 
Marshal and the Colonel began to talk of the fire, and of 
several officers who had perished there with their servants. 
As they knew I had been present, they asked me for details 
of the disaster, as the officer we had saved could say 
nothing — he was too much overcome. 

It was perhaps nine o'clock, an intensely dark night, 

79 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

and many of us were already asleep — a sleep continually 
broken by the cold and the pain we suffered from fatigue 
and hunger. The fire also was constantly going out. We 
thought of the next day, which should bring us to Smolensk, 
where we had heard our misery would be over, as food 
could be had there and we should take up our quarters. 

I had just finished my miserable supper of horse's liver, 
with snow for drink ; the Marshal had eaten some also, 
but he had besides a little biscuit and a drop of brandy 
— not a very delicate repast for a Marshal of France, 
but quite luxurious in our present unfortunate circum- 
stances. 

As we were eating, the Marshal saw a man leaning on 
his musket at the entrance to the barn, and asked him why 
he was there. The man replied that he was on sentry duty. 

' For whom ?' said the Marshal ; ' and whj^ should you 
do it ? You cannot keep out cold and hunger from us. 
Come in and sit down by the fire.' 

He then asked for some sort of pillow for his head. 
His servant brought him a portmanteau, and, wrapping 
himself in his cloak, he went to sleep. As I was following 
his example, in my bearskin, we were roused by an extra- 
ordinary noise. This was the north wind travelling over 
the forests, bringing with it heavy snow and twenty-seven 
degrees of frost, so that it became quite impossible for the 
men to stay where they had camped. We heard them 
shouting as they ran about towards any fire they saw; 
but the heavy snow-storms caught them, and they could 
soon run no more, or if they tried to do so, they fell and 
never rose again. In this way many hundreds perished, 
and thousands died of those who had stayed where they 
were camped. We were most fortunate in getting shelter 
in our corner of the barn. Many men took refuge with 
us, and thus saved their lives. 

80 



DEVOTION 

I must relate an act of devotion called forth by this 
disastrous night, when all the powers of hell seemed to 
be turned loose on us. 

The Prince Emile of Hesse-Cassel was with us, and his 
contingent, composed of several regiments of cavalry and 
infantry. Like us, he bivouacked on the left side of the 
road, with the remainder of his unfortunate men, now 
reduced to five or six hundred. About a hundred and 
fifty dragoons were left ; but these were almost all on 
foot, their horses being dead and eaten. These brave men, 
almost frozen with the cold, sacrificed themselves in this 
awful night to save their young Prince, not more than 
twenty years of age. They stood round him the whole 
night wrapped in their great white cloaks, pressed tightly 
one against the other, protecting him from the wind and 
cold. The next morning three-quarters of them were 
dead and buried beneath the snow, along with ten thousand 
others from different corps. 

At daylight, to regain the road, we were obliged to go 
down to the ravine, where the evening before the artillery- 
men had made their bivouac. Not one was left alive ; 
men and horses were all covered with snow — the men still 
round the fires, the horses harnessed to the guns, which 
we were forced to leave there. 

It almost always happened that the weather became 
more endurable after a storm and excessive cold. It seemed 
as if Nature had wearied herself out in torturing us, and 
she must have breathing-space before she struck us again. 

All who were still alive set out once more. To right 
and left of the road men half dead crept out of wretched 
shelters formed by pine branches, buried all night under 
the snow. Others came from further off in the woods, 
dragging themselves painfully along. We halted a little, 
waiting for them, talking to each other of the horrors of 

8i a 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURG OGNE 

the night and the incredible number of men we had lost, 
and looking mechanically over that terrible field. Piles 
of arms were there in places, many others overthrown, 
but no one to take them up. 

After collecting together as far as we couldj we recom- 
menced the march, our regiment forming the rear-guard. 
This was a most painful and weary day for us, as numbers 
of men could no longer walk, and we were obliged to hold 
them up under the arms, dragging them with us, to save 
them if possible by getting them to Smolensk. 

We had to cross a little wood before reaching the town ; 
here we came up with all the artillery collected together. 
The horses were a fearful sight ; the gun-carriages and 
waggons were crowded with sick men dying from the cold. 
I remember that one of my old friends named Ficq, from 
the same part of the country as myself, was in this con- 
dition. I asked a Chasseur of the Guard of his regiment 
what had become of him, and he told me only a few minutes 
ago he had fallen dead on the road. Just at that place he 
said the road was narrow, and in a deep hollow, so that 
they could not carry his body to the side. All the artillery, 
therefore, had passed over him, as well as some others 
fallen in the same place. 

I was walking now in a narrow footpath in the wood to 
the left of the road, and with me was one of my friends, a 
sergeant in the same regiment. We suddenly came upon 
a gunner of the Guard lying right across the path. By 
him was another gunner stripping his clothes from him. 
We could see that the man was not dead, as his legs 
moved, and every now and then he struck the ground with 
his fists. Without saying a word, my companion gave 
the wretched thief a blow in the back with the butt of his 
musket. We immediately abused him violently for his 
barbarous conduct. He answered that, although the other 

82 



HORRORS 

was not dead, he very soon would have died, as he had 
been quite unconscious when placed there to be out of 
the way of the artillery ; and, besides, he was his mess- 
mate, and if anyone had the clothes he was the right 
man. 

The same thing frequently happened to these wretched 
men who were supposed to have money about them. 
There were many who remained by those who had fallen : 
not to help them, but to behave as did the gunner. 

For the honour of humanity, perhaps, I ought not to 
describe all these scenes of horror, but I have determined 
to write down all I saw. I cannot do otherwise, and, 
besides, all these things have taken such possession of my 
mind that I think if I write them down they will cease to 
trouble me. And if in this disastrous campaign acts of 
infamy were committed, there were noble actions, too, 
which do honour to our humanity ; amongst others, I have 
seen men carry a wounded officer on their shoulders for 
many days. 

As we emerged from the wood, we met about a hundred 
lancers mounted on good horses with new equipments. 
They came from Smolensk, where they had been all the 
time. They were horrified on seeing the wretched con- 
dition we were in, and we were no less surprised to see 
their well-being. Many of our men ran after them like 
beggars, asking if they had a bit of bread or biscuit to 
give them. 

We now made a halt to wait for those who were bringing 
the sick. It was a most harrowing sight. Talk to them 
as we would of the hope of good food and lodging, they 
seemed not to hear anything. They were like clay figures, 
walking where they were led, standing still if they were 
left. The strongest among them took turns in carrying the 
arms and knapsacks, for these unfortunate men, who, besides 

83 G— 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

having lost their strength and a part of their reason, had 
also lost their fingers and toes. 

We now saw the Dnieper again on our left, and on the 
further bank caught sight of the thousands of men who 
had crossed the river on the ice. Foot soldiers and cavalry 
were there from different corps, running as fast as they 
could towards a distant village to get food and shelter for 
the night. We marched on painfully for another hour, and 
in the evening reached the banks of the fatal Boristhene ; 
we crossed the river, and, worn out with fatigue and almost 
dying, we were at last beneath the walls of the town. 

Thousands of men were there already, from every 
corps and of every nation. They were there waiting at 
the gates and ramparts till they could gain admission, and 
this had been refused them on the ground that, marching 
as they were without officers or order, and already dying 
of hunger, they might pillage the town for provisions. 
Many hundreds of these men were already dead or dying. 
When we arrived there with the rest of the Guard in an 
orderly fashion, and taking the utmost precaution for our 
sick and wounded, the gates were opened, and we entered. 
The greater number broke the ranks, and spread on all 
sides, anxious to find some roof under which to spend the 
night, and eat the food promised us. 

To obtain any sort of order, it was announced that men 
isolated from the rest would get nothing ; so after this the 
men were careful to rejoin their regiments, and choose a 
head to represent them, as several of the old regiments 
existed no longer. We of the Imperial Guard crossed the 
town with extreme difficulty, worn out with fatigue as we 
were. We had to climb the steep slope which separates 
the Boristhene from the other gate ; this was covered with 
ice, and at every step the weakest of our men fell and had 
to be lifted up ; others could not walk at all. 



SMOLENSK 

In this way we came to the side of the faubourg which 
had been burnt at the bombardment last August. We 
settled down as well as we could, in the ruins of those 
houses the fire had not quite destroyed. The sick and 
wounded who had had strength and courage enough to 
come with us were made as comfortable as possible. We 
were obliged to leave some of them, however, in a hut in a 
wood, near the entrance of the town, being much too ill to 
go any farther. Amongst them was a friend of mine, in a 
dying condition. He had dragged himself so far, hoping 
to find a hospital, for we had all hoped to stay in this town 
and the neighbourhood until the spring. Our hopes were 
disappointed, however, as most of the villages were burnt 
and in ruins, and the town of Smolensk existed only in 
name. Nothing was to be seen but the walls of houses 
built of stone ; the greater part of the town had been built of 
wood, and had disappeared. The town, in fact, was a mere 
skeleton. If we went any distance in the dark, we came 
on pitfalls — that is, the cellars belonging to the wooden 
houses, now completely gone. These cellars were covered 
with snow, and if any man was so unfortunate as to step 
on one, he disappeared, and we saw him no more. A great 
many men were lost in this manner. Their bodies were 
dragged out again the next day, not for burial, but for the 
sake of their clothes, or anything else they might have 
about them. All those who died, whether on the march 
or while we stopped, were treated in the same way. The 
living men despoiled the dead, very often, in their turn, 
dying a few hours afterwards, and being subjected to the 
same fate. 

Soon after our arrival, a little flour was given out to us, 
and about an ounce of biscuit, more, indeed, than we could 
have hoped for. Those of us who had a saucepan made 
hasty pudding ; others made cakes, and cooked them in the 

85 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

ashes, devouring them half raw. Several of the men were 
dangerously ill afterwards, in consequence of the avidity 
with which they devoured the food. I was lucky enough 
not to suffer, although I had not tasted soup since Novem- 
ber ist, and the hasty pudding made of rye flour was as 
heavy as lead. 

Many of the sick men who had made gigantic efforts to 
get here died, and as they occupied the best positions in 
our miserable ruins, their bodies were hastily removed, 
so that others could take their places. 

After resting a little, in spite of the cold and falling- 
snow, I went out to look for one of my comrades. He 
was my best and dearest friend; we had been together for 
seven years, and we had everything in common. His 
name was Grangier.* At Viasma he had gone forward 
with a detachment, escorting a waggon belonging to 
Marshal Bessieres, and I had not seen him since. I heard 
that he had arrived two days ago, and was quartered in 
one of the faubourgs. The hope of seeing him again, 
and also of sharing his provisions and his quarters, 
decided me to go at once. Without a word to anyone, 
I took my knapsack and re-entered the town by the 
road we had taken, and after falling on the steep and 
slippery slope several times, I reached the gate by which 
we had entered. 

I stopped to see after the men we had left near the 
guard at the gate ; this guard was composed of men from 
Baden, who partly formed the garrison. But my surprise 
was great on seeing the friend we had left with the others, 
till we could fetch them away, lying at the door of the hut, 
with nothing on but his trousers ; everything had been 
taken from him, even his boots. 

* Sergeant-velite in the same regiment as myself, the Fusilier- 
Grenadiers. — AuthoT^s Note. 

86 



HUMANITY 

The Baden men told me that soldiers from the regiment 
had been to fetch the others, and, finding that this man 
was dead, they had themselves taken his clothes, and that 
afterwards they had carried away the two sick men, going 
round the town by the ramparts, hoping to find an easier 
road. While I was there several wretched men from 
different regiments came also, leaning on their muskets, 
hardly able to drag themselves along. Others, who were 
still on the farther side of the Boristhene, had fallen down 
in the snow, crying and imploring help. These German 
soldiers, however, either did not or would not understand. 
Fortunately, a young officer in command spoke French, 
and I begged hirn, in common humanity, to send help to 
these men over the bridge. He replied that since our 
arrival more than half his guard had been employed in 
that way, that there were hardly any men left, and that 
his guard-room was filled with sick and wounded, till there 
was no room to move. 

However, as I entreated, he sent three men, who came 
back soon afterwards supporting an old Chasseur of the 
Cavalry of the Guard. They said they had left many 
others who would have to be carried, and that in the 
meantime they had put them near a large fire. The old 
Chasseur had nearly all his toes frozen, and had wrapped 
them up in a sheepskin. His beard, whiskers, and moustache 
were filled with icicles. They led him near a fire, where 
he sat down, and then he began to curse Alexander, the 
Emperor of Russia, the country, and the God of Russia. 
Then he asked me if brandy had been given out. 

I said, ' No, not yet ; there does not seem much chance of it.' 

' Then,' he said, ' I had better die.' 

The young German officer, on seeing the veteran suffer 
so terribly, could resist no longer, and, drawing a bottle 
of brandy from his pocket, he gave some to him. 

87 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

' Thanks,' he said ; ' you have saved my life. If I ever 
have an opportunity of saving your life at the cost of 
my own, you may be sure I shall not hesitate a moment. 
Remember Roland, Chasseur of the Old Guard, now on 
foot, or, to be exact, on no feet just at present. I had 
to leave my horse three days ago, and blew out his brains 
to put an end to his sufferings. I cut a piece off his leg 
afterwards, and I am going to eat a little now.' 

Saying this, he unfastened the portmanteau he carried 
on his back, and, taking out some horseflesh, he offered 
some first to the officer and then to me. The officer gave 
him the bottle of brandy, and begged him to keep it. The 
old chasseur was grateful beyond all words. He again 
asked the officer not to forget him either in garrison or 
in the field, and finally said : 

' The right sort never die.' But directly afterwards he 
reminded himself what a foolish speech he had made. 
' For,' he said, ' there were many as good as me among 
the thousands who have died these last three days. I 
have been in Egypt, and, by God ! it was no comparison 
with this. I hope to goodness we are at the end of our 
troubles ; they say we are to take up our quarters here 
and wait for the spring, when we can take our revenge.' 

The poor old fellow, rendered so talkative by a few 
mouthfuls of brandy, had no conception that we were 
only at the beginning of our troubles ! 

It was quite eleven o'clock, but I had not given up the 
search for Grangier, even during the night. I asked the 
officer to direct me to where he supposed Marshal Bessieres 
was quartered ; but either I was misinformed or I did not 
understand, and I mistook the road. I found myself 
with the rampart on my right, and the Boristhene flowing 
beneath ; on my left was a piece of waste ground, on the 
site of houses burnt down. Here and there through the 



A DEN OF THIEVES 

darkness I saw odd beams and rafters standing out like 
shadows on the snow. The road I had taken was such 
a bad one, and I was so tired, that, after stumbHng on a 
Httle way, I regretted having come alone. I began to 
retrace my steps, and put off my search for Grangier till 
the next day, when I heard someone behind me, and, 
turning, I recognised one of the Baden soldiers carrying 
a little barrel looking like brandy on his shoulder. I 
called to him, but he did not answer, and when I followed 
him, he doubled his pace. I did the same. He then ran 
down a rapid slope, and I tried to follow him ; but my 
legs gave way beneath me, and I rolled from top to bottom, 
getting to the door of a cellar as soon as he did. The 
weight of my body against the door opened it, and I went 
in before the Baden fellow, with my right shoulder badly 
bruised, however. 

I had scarcely time to collect my wits and look about 
me, when I was startled by confused cries in different 
languages from a dozen people lying on straw round a 
fire. They were French, German, and Italian, and I saw 
at once they were a gang of thieves who banded themselves 
together, travelled before the army, and arrived first at any 
houses they found, or camped separately in the villages. 
As soon as the army arrived at any place, the thieves came 
out of their hiding, prowled round the bivouacs, stole as 
quietly as possible their horses and bags from the officers, 
and set out again very early in the morning before the 
army started. This was their plan every day. The gang 
was one of those which had prowled about ever since the 
great cold began, and multiplied as they went. 

I was stunned by my fall, and lay still for a minute, 
when one of the thieves lit a bit of straw to see me better. 
It was impossible to discover what regiment I belonged to 
on account of my bearskin. As soon, however, as he caught 

89 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

sight of the Imperial eagle on my shako, he called out in 
a jeering way, ' Ah ! the Imperial Guard ! Out with you ! 
out with you !' And the others repeated, ' Get out ! Out 
with you !' 

I was stupefied and not at all alarmed by their shouting, 
and I got up to beg them to let me stay till morning, as 
fate or luck had brought me there. But the man who 
had spoken first, and seemed to be the chief, replied that 
I must go at once, and they all chorused, ' Be off ! Out 
with you !' 

A German was laying his hands on me, when I gave 
him a blow in the chest that sent him sprawling among 
the others, putting my hand on the hilt of my sword at 
the same time (my musket had been left behind in my roll 
down the hill). The chief applauded me for the blow I 
had given, saying a German, a sauerkraut-eater, had no 
business to touch a Frenchman. As I saw that the man 
was disposed to take my part, I announced that I would 
not go away until the morning, and that I would rather 
be killed than die of cold on the road. One of two women 
there began to put in a word for me, but was immediately 
ordered, in curses and filthy language, to be silent. The 
chief told me again to go, asking me not to oblige him to 
use force, as, if he did, the question would soon be settled, 
and I should be sent flying to rejoin my regiment. 

I asked him why he and his companions were not there 
also, and he told me it was none of my business, that he 
had nothing to do with me, that he was master here, and 
that I could not spend the night with him, as I should be 
in their way when they made their night excursions, taking 
advantage of the disorder of the town. I then asked for per- 
mission to stay and warm myself, and said that afterwards 
I would go. Not receiving any answer, I asked a second 
time ; the chief said be would consent if I left in half an 

go 



A DEN OF THIEVES 

hour. He ordered a drummer, who seemed to be second 
in command, to see that this was done. 

As I wished to make the best of my opportunity, I asked 
if anyone had any food or brandy to sell. ' If we had/ 
they said, * we should keep it ourselves.' 

However, the little cask I had seen on the Baden man's 
shoulders looked very like brandy, and I understood when 
he said in his own language that he had taken it from a 
cantinicre in his regiment, who had hidden it when the 
army came into the town. I concluded from this that 
the man was a new-comer, one of the garrison, and 
had only joined the thieves the day before, choosing, 
as they had done, to leave his regiment for the sake of 
plunder. 

The drummer who was to see me out talked mysteriously 
with the others, and then asked me if I had any gold to 
buy brandy with. 

' No,' I said, ' but I have some five-franc pieces.' 

A woman near me, who had wished to take my part 
before, stooped down and seemed to be searching for 
something on the ground near the door. Coming close 
up to me, she said in a low voice : 

* Run away; believe me, they will kill you. I have been 
with them, against my will, since Viasma. Come back 
with help, I implore you, to-morrow morning, to save me!' 

I asked her who the other woman was, and she replied, 
' A Jewess.' 

I was going to question her further, when a voice 
from the back of the cellar told her to be quiet, and asked 
her what she had been saying. She answered that she 
had been telling me to get brandy of a Jew in the new 
market. 

' Hold your tongue !' he replied. 

She was silent, and went to a corner of the cellar. 

91 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

After what the woman had said, I saw there was no 
doubt that I was in a regular den of thieves. So I did 
not wait till they turned me out, and, pretending to look 
for a place to lie down in, I got near the door, opened it, 
and went out. They called me back, saying I could stay 
all night and sleep there. But I made no answer, and 
picking up my musket, which lay near the entrance, I 
tried to find a way out of the hole. Not succeeding, I was 
on the point of knocking at the cellar door to ask the way, 
when the Baden soldier appeared, probably to see if it was 
time to make an excursion. He asked me again if I would 
go back. I said no, but I begged him to show me the 
way to the faubourg. He signed to me to follow him, 
and crossing the ruins of several houses, he climbed up 
by means of the staircase. I followed him, and when we 
were on the ramparts he made several detours on the 
pretext of showing me the way, but I could see that he 
wanted me to lose all trace of the way to the cellar. 
However, I wished to remember it, as I intended to go 
back the next day with several others to save the poor 
woman who had begged my help, and also to get an 
explanation about several portmanteaus I had seen at the 
back of their cursed cellar. 



92 



CHAPTER VI. 

A DISTURBED NIGHT 1 FIND MY FRIENDS AGAIN — WE LEAVE 

SMOLENSK — A NECESSARY CORRECTION THE BATTLE OF 

KRASNOE — MELLE THE DRAGOON. 

My guide disappeared suddenly, and I was at a total loss 
as to my whereabouts. I was only sorry now that I had 
ever left the regiment. However, I had to go in one 
direction or another, and, as the snow had stopped falling, 
I began to search for my footmarks. And then I re- 
membered that I must keep the rampart on my right hand. 
After walking for some minutes, I seemed to recognise the 
place where I met the Baden soldier ; but, to make quite 
sure, I marked two deep crosses in the snow with the butt- 
end of my musket, before going further. 

It was now about midnight, and more than an hour 
since I had fallen into the cellar, and during that time the 
cold had increased terribly. I saw a great many fires on 
my left, but dared not go in that direction for fear of fall- 
ing into holes that the snow had hidden. I walked on, 
feeling my way with my head down, looking out for safe 
places for my feet. I now saw that the road sloped down- 
wards, and further on I found it was almost blocked up by 
gun-carriages, intended no doubt for the rampart. When 
I had arrived at the bottom, it was so fearfully dark that I 

93 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

lost all idea of direction, and I was obliged to sit down on 
a gun-carriage to rest, and try to think which way I ought 
to take. 

In this dreadful predicament, as I sat with my head 
buried in my hands, I was dropping off into a sleep from 
which I should not have awakened, when I heard some 
extraordinary sounds. I got up, terrified to think of the 
danger I had just escaped. I listened with all my ears, 
but heard nothing more. So I think I must have been 
dreaming, or perhaps it was a warning from Heaven to 
save me. So taking fresh courage, I began to walk again, 
feeling my way, and striding over the numbers of obstacles 
in the road. 

At last I left all the obstacles behind me, after nearly 
breaking my leg several times, and I rested a moment to 
take breath and get strength enough to climb a hill in 
front of me. Then I heard the same sounds which had 
awakened me before, but this time I recognised them for 
music. I heard the slow, prolonged notes of an organ 
some distance off: they produced an indescribable im- 
pression on me, alone as I was at such a place, and at 
such an hour. I set out, quickening my pace, in the 
direction of the sounds — up the steep ascent. When I 
got to the top, I took a few steps, and then stopped — just 
in time ! another step, and I should have been done for — 
I should have fallen from top to bottom of the rampart, 
more than fifty feet, on to the banks of the Boristhene. 
Horrified at my narrow escape, I drew back a few steps, 
and stopped to listen, but I did not hear the sound again. 
I began walking once more, and, turning to the left, 
fortunately found the beaten track. Slowly and cautiously 
I advanced, holding my head well up, my ears open for 
any sound, and at last I made up my mind the music had 
been an hallucination. In our present dreadful circum- 

94 



A DISTURBED NIGHT 

stances, how could such music have been possible — and, 
above all, at such an hour ? 

Reflecting as I walked, my right foot, which already 
was half frozen, and giving me some pain, struck against 
something hard. I cried out with the pain, and fell all 
my length over a dead body, its face touching mine, then 
raised myself with great difficulty, and saw that it was the 
body of a dragoon, his helmet still strapped on, and his 
cloak, on which he had fallen. He had probably not been 
there long. 

My cry of pain was heard by a man on my right, who 
called out to me to go to him, he had been waiting for so 
long. I was surprised, and very glad to find a human 
being when I thought I was quite alone, and I went in the 
direction of the voice. The nearer I got to it, the better 
I seemed to recognise it, and at last I cried : 

' Is it you, Beloque ?'* 

' Yes,' he called back. 

He was as much surprised as I at our meeting at this 
time of night, in such a desolate spot, and knowing no 
more than I did where we were. He had at first taken 
me for a corporal who had gone to get men on extra duty 
to help carry the sick who had been left at the gates. 
They had been got so far, but then it had been necessary 
to send for more help. 

I told him how I had been lost, and of my adventure in 
the cellar, but I dared not say anything of the music I 
had heard, fearing he should say I was out of my mind. 
He begged me to stay with him, and I was glad to do so. 
Then he asked me why I had cried out, and I told him 
of my fall on to the dragoon, and how my face had 
touched his. 

* Beloque was one of my friends, a sergeant-v^lite like me. — 

Author s Note. 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

* Were you very frightened, poor fellow ?' 

' No,' I said ; ' but I hurt myself horribly.' 

' It was lucky for you,' he said, ' that you were so badly 
hurt as to cry out, as you might have passed on and never 
found me.' 

We stamped backwards and forwards to keep ourselves 
warm while we waited for the men who were to carry 
away the sick. 

The poor fellows were lying on a sheepskin, propped up 
one against another, and covered with the cloak and coat 
of a dead man. They seemed in a terrible condition. 

' I am afraid,' Beloque said, ' that we shall not have the 
trouble of taking them away.' 

We heard them murmur and breathe from time to time, 
but these were the last efforts of dying men. 

While the fearful death-rattle was going on near us, the 
aerial music began again, but this time much nearer. I 
called Beloque's attention to it, and told him of the 
strange things which had happened to me when I heard 
the sounds before. And then he said that at intervals he 
had heard the music too, and could not make it out. Some- 
times it made an infernal racket, and if men were amusing 
themselves in that way, they must have the devil inside them. 
Then, coming closer to me, he said in a low voice : 

' My friend, these sounds are very like death-music. 
Death is all round us ; and I have a presentiment that in 
a few days I shall be dead too.' Then he added, ' May 
God's will be done ! But the suffering seems too great. 
Look at those poor wretches !' — pointing to two men lying 
in the snow. 

I said nothing, for I thought just as he did. 

He stopped speaking, and we listened attentively in a 
silence only broken by the heavy breathing of a dying 
man. Suddenly my companion said : 

96 



A DISTURBED NIGHT 

To my mind, the sounds seem to come from above.' 

As he said so, the sounds did certainly seem to come 
from just over our heads. All at once the noise ceased, 
and an awful silence followed, broken only by a mournful 
cry — the last breath of one of our men. 

Just then we heard footsteps, and a corporal came up 
with eight men, to carry away the two who were dying ; 
as there was now only one, he was removed at once — 
covered with his dead companion's clothes — and we all 
set out. 

It was now past one o'clock : the wind had dropped, and 
the cold in consequence was not so great, but I was so 
worn out that I could walk no longer; and besides, I was 
so terribly tired that several times Beloque found me 
standing asleep in the road. He had told me where to 
find Grangier ; the men of his company in charge of the 
only cart the Marshal had left remaining had seen their 
comrades, and had recognised the cart placed at the 
Marshal's door. When we got to the place where we 
left the rampart, I parted from the funeral cortege, and 
decided to follow the new way pointed out to me. 

I had not been alone a minute, when the cursed music 
started again. I stopped, and, raising my head to listen 
better, I saw a light in front of me. As I walked on towards 
the light, the road descended rapidly and the light dis- 
appeared. In spite of this, I continued, but was stopped 
almost directly by a wall in front of me, and was forced 
to retrace my steps. I turned first to the right, then to 
the left, and found myself in a street of ruined houses. I 
strode on quickly, still guided by the music. At the end 
of the street there was a building lighted up, from which 
the sounds evidently came. There I was stopped by a 
wall surrounding the building, which I now saw was a 
church, 

97 H 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

Tired as I was, I wished to avoid going all round the wall 
to find an opening, and decided to climb over it, feeling 
the depth on the other side with my musket. As it was 
not more than three or four feet, I climbed to the top and 
jumped down, and striking some round object with my 
feet, I fell. I was not hurt, however, but on walking a few 
steps I felt the ground uneven under my feet, and had to 
steady myself with my musket. I then became aware of 
the fact that more than 200 dead bodies lay on the 
ground, barely covered with snow. As I stumbled along, 
picking my way among the legs and arms of the bodies, 
a melancholy chant arose — like the Office for the Dead. 
Beloque's words came back to me, and I broke out into 
a cold sweat, not knowing where I was and what I was 
about. I found myself at last leaning against the church 
wall. 

I came to myself in a bit, in spite of the diabolical 
noise, and walked on with one hand against the wall, at 
length finding an open door through which came a thick 
smoke. I went in, and saw a great number of people, who 
in the dense smoke looked like shadows. Some of them 
were singing, and others playing on the organ. All at 
once a great flame burst forth and the smoke disappeared. 
I looked round to see where I was ; one of the singers 
came up to me and cried out : ' It's our sergeant !' He 
had recognised my bearskin, and I saw, to my immense 
surprise, all the men of my company ! I was on the 
point of questioning them, when one of them offered me 
a silver cup full of brandy. They were all fearfully drunk ! 

One, rather less drunk than the others, said that they 
had been on extra duty when first they came, and that 
they had seen two men with a lantern coming out of a 
cellar ; that they had banded together to go there after 
the distribution of rations, to see if they could find some- 

98 



I FIND MY FRIENDS AGAIN 

thing to eat, and then spend the night in this church. In 
the cellar the}^ had found a small cask of brandy, a bag of 
rice, and a little biscuit, besides ten capes trimmed with 
fur, and some Rabbi's fur caps. 

With the men of the company were several musicians of 
the regiment, who had started playing the organ — being 
half seas over, as they say. This explained the harmony 
which had puzzled me so much. 

They gave me some rice, a few pieces of biscuit, and a 
Rabbi's cap, trimmed with magnificent black fox fur. I 
put the rice carefully away in my knapsack. The cap I 
placed on my head, and pulling a plank in front of the fire, 
I lay down on it.' I had scarcely laid my head on my 
knapsack when I heard shouts and curses from the door, 
so we hastened to see what was the matter. Six men were 
driving a cart drawn by a worn-out horse. The cart was 
filled with dead bodies to be left behind the church, with 
the others I had seen there. The ground was much too 
hard to dig graves, and the cold preserved the bodies in 
the meanwhile. These men told us that, if this sort of 
thing went on, there would soon be no room anywhere for 
the bodies ; all the churches were used as hospitals, and 
were filled with the sick, whom it was impossible to help. 
This was the only church not full of them, and the dead 
had been laid here for the last few days. From the time 
that the column of the Grand Army had made its appear- 
ance, they had been unable to supply transport for the men 
who died as soon as they arrived. After hearing all this I 
lay down again. These ambulance men asked us if they 
might spend the rest of the night with us ; they un- 
harnessed their horse and brought him into the church. 

I slept pretty well for the remainder of the night, but 
was awakened before daylight by the shrieks of an un- 
fortunate musician, who had just broken his leg in coming 

99 H — 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

down from the organ-loft, where he had slept. The men 
below had taken away some of the steps during the 
night to make a fire. The poor devil had a terrible fall, 
it was impossible for him to walk ; most probably he 
never left the church. When I got up, nearly all the men 
were roasting meat on the points of their swords. I asked 
them where the meat came from, and they replied it was 
the horse who had drawn the dead-cart, and that they had 
killed him while the ambulance men were asleep. I don't 
blame them for doing it : one must live somehow. An 
hour afterwards, when a good quarter of the horse had 
disappeared, one of the undertakers told his companions 
what we had done. They were furious, and threatened to 
inform the chief director of the hospitals. We went on 
eating calmly, saying it was a pity he was so thin, and 
that half a dozen like him would be wanted for rations 
for the regiment. They went off threatening us, and in 
revenge they threw the seven corpses they had in their 
cart right in the doorway, so that we were obliged to 
climb over them to get out. 

These ambulance men had not been through the 
campaign, or felt the want of anything, and they did 
not know that for the last few days we had lived on any 
horses we could find. 

When I got ready to go back to my regiment it was 
seven o'clock. I told the fourteen men that were there 
that they must collect together and arrive in good order. 
We first had some very good puree de cheval au riz. After 
that, giving them the bag containing the Jew's fur capes 
to carry, we left the church, which was already filling with 
new-comers — some miserable wretches who had spent the 
night where they could, and many others who had left 
their regiments, hoping to find something better. They 
prowled about in all the corners, looking for food. They 

lOO 



I FIND MY FRIENDS AGAIN 

did not seem to notice the dead bodies in the doorway, 
but walked over them as if they had been wood, so stiff 
were they frozen. 

When we reached the road I told my men of my 
adventure in the cellar, and proposed to go there, and 
they agreed. We found the way quite easily, for we had 
as sign-posts first the man whom Beloque had left dead, 
and then the dragoon over whom I had fallen, and who, 
I now saw, was without his cloak and his boots. After 
passing the gun-carriages where I nearly fell fatally 
asleep, we reached the cross I had made in the snow. 
After descending the slope in rather slower fashion 
than I had done the day before, we stood before the door, 
which was shut. We knocked, but no one answered ; we 
burst the door in, but the birds had flown. We only 
found one man, so drunk he could not speak. I recognised 
him as the German who wished to turn me out. He was 
wrapped in a great sheepskin cape, which was taken from 
him by one of our musicians, in spite of his resistance. 
We found several portmanteaus and a trunk — stolen during 
the night — but all were empty, and also the cask brought 
by the Baden man, which had contained gin. 

Before going on to the camp I noticed our position 
and was surprised to find that, although I had wajked so 
much during the night, I had been no distance. I had 
simply walked round and round the church. 

We then went back to the camp. As we went I met 
several men of our regiment, whom I joined to those 
already with me. Just afterwards I saw a non-commis- 
sioned officer in the distance, whom by his white knapsack 
I recognised at once as the very man I was looking for — 
Grangier. I had embraced him before he knew who I 
was, I had altered so much. We were mutually looking 
for each other, and if I had had the patience to wait, he 

lOI 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

said he would have taken me to his quarters and given me 
good soup, and straw to sleep on, for he had searched for 
me at this very place the evening before. He went with 
us to the camp, whither I brought my nineteen men in good 
order. Grangier then made me a sign, and opening his 
knapsack, he took out a piece of beef, ready cooked, 
which he said he had kept for me, and also a piece of 
bread. 

I simply devoured the food, for it was twenty-three 
days since I had tasted anything like it. Then he asked 
me for news of a friend of his, whom he supposed danger- 
ously ill. I could only tell him that he was in the town, 
but as we did not know the whereabouts of his regiment, 
he would be obliged to gO through the gate by which we 
had entered, as many of the sick, unable to go further, 
had remained there. So we set off at once. 

We soon reached the place where the poor dragoon lay. 
This time we found him almost stripped ; he had been 
searched, no doubt, in the hope of finding a belt con- 
taining money. I showed Grangier the cellar, and then 
we arrived at the gate. The number of dead there was 
appalling ; near the Baden sentry were four men of the 
Guard, who had died during the night. The officer on 
duty had forbidden the men to strip them, and he told us 
of two more he had in his guard-room. We went in to 
see them ; they were both unconscious. The first was a 
Chasseur ; the second, his face hidden in a handkerchief, 
was in our regiment. Grangier uncovered his face, and 
recognised the man he was in search of. We did all we 
possibly could to bring him round, relieving him of his 
sword and powder-flask and his collar, and trying to force 
a few drops of brandy between his lips. He opened his 
eyes without seeming to see us, and directly afterwards 
died in my arms. We emptied his knapsack, and found a 



I FIND MY FRIENDS AGAIN 

watch and several little knick-knacks, which G rangier 
took charge of, to send as keepsakes to his family, if ever 
he were lucky enough to get back to France. We placed 
the Chasseur as comfortably as possible, and then left him 
to his melancholy fate ; what else could we do ? 

Grangier then took me to his post, and when, soon 
afterwards, he was relieved b}' some Chasseurs, we asked 
them to look after the man we had just left. The 
sergeant immediately sent four men to fetch him. 

We returned to the regiment, and the rest of the day 
we spent in getting our firearms into good order, in warm- 
ing ourselves and talking. We killed several horses during 
the day, and divided them. Rations of rye and oatmeal 
were given out, consisting chiefly of straw with a little rye 
mixed. 

At four o'clock the next morning we were ordered under 
arms and sent a quarter of a league from the town, where, 
in spite of the cold, we remained in order of battle until 
daylight. The same thing was repeated the few following 
days, as the Russian army was manoeuvring on our left. 

We had been three days already at Smolensk, and we 
did not know if we had to remain in this position or 
continue the retreat. To stay, they said, was impossible. 
Why, then, did we not leave a town where there were no 
houses to shelter us, and no provisions to feed us ? On 
the fourth day, as we returned from our position of the 
morning, I saw an officer of a line regiment lying in front 
of a fire. We looked for some time at each other, trying 
to recall each other's appearance and features under the 
rags and dirt with which we were covered. I stopped; 
he got up, and, coming nearer to me, he said : 

* I thought I was not mistaken.' 

* No,' I said. 

We had recognised and embraced each other without 

I01 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

pronouncing a name. It was Beaulieu,* my messmate in 
the Velites when we were at Fontainebleau. 

How much we had both altered, and how wretched our 
condition now ! I had not seen him since the Battle of 
Wagram, when he had left the Guard, to pass as an officer 
into the line, with other Velites. 

I asked him after his regiment ; for answer he pointed 
out the eagle to me in the middle of a pile of arms. There 
were thirty-three of them left. He and the Surgeon- 
Major were the only officers ; of the others, a great many 
had been killed in battle, but more than half had died of 
cold and hunger ; a few had been lost on the road. 

Beaulieu was Captain, and he had received orders to 
follow the Guard. I stayed with him for some time, and, 
as he had nothing to eat, we shared the rice the men in 
the church had given me. In those days, when food was 
not to be had for gold, this was the greatest proof of 
friendship one could possibly give. 

On the morning of the 14th, the Emperor left Smolensk 
with the Grenadiers and Chasseurs ; we followed a short 
time after as rear-guard, leaving behind us the corps 
belonging to Prince Eugene, Davoust, and Ney, reduced 
to lamentably small numbers. On first leaving the town 
we crossed the Sacred Field, so called by the Russians. 
A little past Korouitniaf we came upon a deep ravine; 
here we had to wait while the artillery crossed it. I went 
in search of Grangier, and proposed that we should cross 
first, as we were getting frozen while standing still. When 
we were at the other side, I saw three men round a dead 

* Beaulieu was from Conde, in Valenciennes, my native country. 
When I came out of prison in 1814, his sister, Mme. Vast^, told me 
that her unfortunate brother had been killed by a bullet at Dresden.— 
Author's Note. 

t Korouitnia, a small VxWage..— Author' s Note. 

104 



WE LEAVE SMOLENSK 

horse; two of them staggered about as if they were drunk. 
The third, a German, lay on the horse ; the poor wretch 
was dying of hunger, and, not being able to cut the flesh, 
was trying to bite it. He soon afterwards died where 
he was of cold and hunger. The two others, Hussars, 
were covered with blood about the hands and mouth. 
We spoke to them, but they did not answer ; they looked 
at us, laughing in a horrible way, and then sat down close 
to the dead man, where they no doubt fell into the last 
fatal sleep. 

We went on then, walking by the side of the highroad 
to come up with the right of the column, and then wait 
for our regiment near a fire, if we were lucky enough to 
find one. We met a Hussar — I think of the 8th Regiment ; 
the poor fellow was struggling against death, continually 
rising and falling down again. We ran up to give him 
what help we could ; but he fell once more, not to rise 
again. Thus, all along our way we were forced to step 
over the dead and dying. As we advanced with great 
difficulty, keeping to the right of the road to get past the 
convoys, we saw a man of the line sitting against a tree 
near a little fire ; he was busy melting snow in a saucepan 
to cook the liver and heart of a horse he had just killed 
with his bayonet. 

As we had rice and oatmeal with us, we asked him to 
lend us the saucepan to cook them, so that we could all 
eat together. He was delighted ; so with the rice and 
straw-oatmeal we made some soup, seasoning it with a 
little sugar Grangier had in his knapsack, as we had no 
salt. While our soup was cooking, we roasted some bits 
of liver and kidneys from a horse, and enjoyed it greatly. 
We devoured our rice only half cooked, and hastened to 
join our regiment, which had passed us. That night the 
Emperor slept at Korouitnia, and we in a wood a short 

los 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

distance off. The next day we set out very early, so as to 
reach Krasnoe ; but before we could get so far, the front 
of the Imperial columns was stopped by 25,000 Russians 
occupying the road. Stragglers at the front daught sight 
of them first, and immediately turned back to join the 
first regiments advancing ; the greater part of them, how- 
ever, united and faced the enemy. A few men, too care- 
less or too wretched to care what they did, fell into the 
enemy's hands. 

The Grenadiers and Chasseurs, formed into close 
columns, advanced against the mass of Russians, who, 
not daring to wait for them, retired and left the passage 
free ; they took up a position on the hills to the left of 
the road, and turned their artillery on us. When we 
heard the cannon, we doubled our pace, as we were 
behind, and arrived just as our gunners were answering 
them. The Russians disappeared behind the hills as our 
fire began, and we continued our way. 

An incident occurred at this time about which I cannot 
keep silence, and I have heard the same incident entirely 
differently related. What they say is this : That when, 
on first catching sight of the Russians, the first regiments 
of the Guard were grouped round the Emperor, marching 
as if no enemy were before them, the band played the 
air 'Ou peut-on etre mieux qu'au sein de sa famille?' 
and that the Emperor stopped the music, ordering to be 
played instead ' Veillons au salut de 1' Empire !' 

The incident did happen, but in quite a different fashion, 
as it was at Smolensk, on the day of our departure. The 
Prince Neuchatel, then Minister of War, seeing that no 
orders for departure came from the Emperor, and that the 
whole army was in despair at being kept in such a wretched 
position, collected some men from the bands under the 
Emperor's window, and told them to play the air ' Ou 

106 



A NECESSARY CORRECTION 

peut-on etre mieux qu'au sein de sa famille ?' They had 
scarcely begun, when the Emperor appeared on the balcony, 
and ordered them to play *Veillons au salut de I'Empire!' 
The men were forced to play it as best they could, in spite 
of their pain, and immediately afterwards the order for 
departure on the next morning was given. How could it 
have been possible for the wretched men, even had they 
been to the right of the regiment, to have blown down 
their instruments, or used their poor frost-bitten fingers ? 
This, on the other hand, was quite a possibility at 
Smolensk, as there were fires where they could get warm. 

In two hours after the encounter with the Russians, the 
Emperor reached Krasnoe with the first regiments of the 
Guard — ours and the Fusiliers-Chasseurs. We camped 
behind the town. I was on guard with fifteen men at 
General Roguet's quarters: a miserable house in the town, 
thatched with straw. I put my men in a stable, thinking 
myself in luck to be under cover, and near a fire we 
had just lighted, but it turned out quite otherwise. 

While we were in Krasnoe and the immediate neigh- 
bourhood, the Russians, 90,000 strong, surrounded us — to 
right, to left, in front, and behind, nothing but Russians — 
thinking, no doubt, they could soon finish us off. But 
the Emperor wished to show them it was not quite so 
easy a thing as they imagined ; for although we were most 
wretched, and dying of cold and hunger, we still possessed 
two things — courage and honour. The Emperor, there- 
fore, annoyed at seeing himself followed by this horde of 
barbarians and savages, decided to rid himself of them. 

On the evening of our arrival. General Roguet received 
orders to attack during the night, taking with him part of 
the Guard, the Fusiliers-Chasseurs, the Grenadiers, the 
light companies, and skirmishers. At eleven o'clock a few 
detachments were sent on first to reconnoitre, and find 

107 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

out exactly where the Russians lay; we could see their 
camp-fires in the two villages they held. They seem to have 
expected us, for some were already prepared to receive us. 

At about one o'clock in the morning, the General came 
to me, and said, with his Gascon accent : 

* Sergeant, leave a corporal and four men here in charge 
of my quarters, and the few things I have left. Go back 
to the camp yourself, and rejoin the regiment with your 
guard. We shall have our work cut out for us presently.' 

To tell the truth, I was very much disgusted at this 
order. I do not mean that I was afraid of fighting, but 
I grudged the time lost for sleep terribly. 

When we got to the camp, preparations were already 
going on ; evidently serious things were expected. I heard 
several men say that they hoped an end would at last be 
put to their sufferings, as they could struggle no longer. 

At two o'clock we began to move forward. We formed 
into three columns — the Fusiliers - Grenadiers (I was 
amongst them) and the Fusiliers-Chasseurs in the centre, 
the skirmishers and light companies on the right and left. 
The cold was as intense as ever. We had the greatest 
difficulty in walking across the fields, as the snow was up 
to our knees. After half an hour of this, we found our- 
selves in the midst of the Russians. On our right was a 
long line of infantry, opening a murderous fire on us, their 
heavy cavalry on our left made up of Cuirassiers in white 
uniform with black cuirasses. They howled like wolves 
to excite each other, but did not dare to attack. The 
artillery was in the centre, pouring grape-shot on us. All 
this did not stop our career in the least. In spite of the 
firing, and the number of our men who fell, we charged 
on into their camp, where we made frightful havoc with 
our bayonets. 

The men who were stationed further off had now had 

io8 



THE BATTLE OF KRASNOE 

time to arm themselves, and come to their comrades' help. 
This they did by setting fire to their camp and the two 
villages near. We fought by the light of the lires. The 
columns on the right and left had passed us, and entered 
the enemy's camp at the two ends, whereas our column 
had taken the middle. 

I have omitted to say that, as the head of our column 
charged into the Russian camp, we passed several hundred 
Russians stretched on the snow ; we believed them to be 
dead or dangerously wounded. These men now jumped 
up and fired on us from behind, so that we had to make 
a demi-tour to defend ourselves. Unluckily for them, a 
battalion in the rear came up behind, so that they were 
taken between two fires, and in five minutes not one was 
left alive. This was a stratagem the Russians often em- 
ployed, but this time it was not successful. 

Poor Beloque was the first man we lost ; he had foretold 
his death at Smolensk. A ball struck his head, and killed 
him on the spot. He was a great favourite with us all, 
and, in spite of the indifference we now felt about every- 
thing, we were really sorry to lose him. 

We went through the Russian camp, and reached the 
village. We forced the enemy to throw a part of their 
artillery into a lake there, and then found that a great 
number of foot soldiers had filled the houses, which were 
partly in flames. We now fought desperately hand-to- 
hand. The slaughter was terrible, and each man fought 
by himself for himself. I found myself near our Colonel, 
the oldest in France, who had been through the campaign 
in Egypt. A sapper was holding him up by the arm, and 
the Adjutant-Major Roustan was there too. We were 
close to a farmyard filled with Russians, and blockaded 
by our men ; they could retreat only by an entrance into 
a large courtyard close by a barrier. 

109 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

While this desultory fighting was going on, I saw a 
Russian officer on a white horse striking with the flat of 
his sword any of his men who tried to get away by 
jumping over the barrier, and so effectually preventing his 
escape. He got possession of the passage, but just as he 
was preparing to jump to the other side, his horse fell 
under him, struck by a ball. The men were forced to 
defend themselves, and the fighting now grew desperate. 
By the lurid light of the fire it was a dreadful scene of 
butchery, Russians and Frenchmen in utter confusion, 
shooting each other muzzle to muzzle. 

I tried to get at the Russian officer, who had now 
extricated himself from his horse, and was trying to save 
himself by getting over the barrier, but a Russian soldier 
got in the way and fired at me. Probably only the priming 
caught fire, otherwise there would have been an end of me ; 
but the man who had fired reloaded his musket calmly, 
thinking, no doubt, that I was dangerously wounded. 
The Adjutant-Major, Roustan, ran to me and, seizing me 
by the arm, said : 

' My poor Bourgogne, are you wounded ?' 

' No,' I answered. 

'Then,' he said, 'don't miss him.' 

That was what I meant also, and before the Russian 
had time to reload, I shot him through. Mortally 
wounded, he did not, however, fall at once, but reeled 
back, and, glaring at me, fell over the officer's horse at 
the barrier. The Adjutant- Major gave him a thrust with 
his sword. Just then I found myself near the Colonel, 
who was completely worn out and fit for nothing more. 
He was alone except for his sapper. The Adjutant -Major 
came up, his sword covered with blood, saying that, to 
get back to the Colonel, he had been forced to cut his 
way with the sword, and that he had a bayonet wound in 



THE BATTLE OF KRASNOE 

his thigh. As he spoke, the sapper, who was supporting 
the Colonel, was struck in the chest by a ball. The 
Colonel instantly said : 

' Sapper, you are wounded ?' 

' Yes, sir,' said the sapper, and, taking the Colonel's 
hand, he made him feel the hole the ball had made. 

' Then go back.' 

The sapper replied that he was strong enough to stay 
and die with him if necessary. 

'And, after all,' said the Adjutant-Major, 'where could 
he go, in the midst of the enemy ? We do not know where 
we are, and I can see that we shall have to wait here, 
fighting, till daylight.' 

We had indeed lost all idea of our locality, blinded by 
the glare from the fires. 

Five minutes after the sapper had been wounded, the 
Russians, whom we had held blockaded in the farm, 
seeing that they ran a chance of being burnt alive, 
offered to surrender. They sent a non-commisioned 
officer through a perfect storm of balls to make the 
proposal. The Adjutant-Major therefore sent me with 
the order to stop firing. 

' Stop firing !' said one of our wounded men ; ' the others 
may stop if they please, but as I am wounded, and very 
likely dying, I shall go on as long as I have cartridges to 
fire with.' 

He went on, therefore, sitting in the snow all stained 
with his blood, and even asked for more cartridges when 
he had fired his own. The Adjutant-Major, seeing that 
his orders were disregarded, came himself with a message 
from the Colonel. But our men, now perfectly desperate, 
took no notice, and still continued to fire. The Russians, 
seeing that there was no hope for them, and probably 
having no more ammunition, tried to rush out all together 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

from the building, where they were fast getting roasted ; 
but our men forced them back. They made a second 
attempt, not being able to endure their position, but 
scarcely had a few of their number reached the yard, 
when the building collapsed on the rest, more than forty 
of them perishing in the flames, and those in the yard 
being crushed as well. 

When this was over, we collected our wounded together, 
and gathered round the Colonel with loaded weapons, 
waiting for daybreak. All this time the rattle of musket- 
shots was going on continually round us, mingled with 
the groans of the wounded and the dying. There is 
nothing more terrible than a battle at night, when often 
fatal mistakes take place. 

In this way we waited for the light. As soon as it 
appeared, we looked about us, and could see the result of 
the night's fighting. The whole ground we had been over 
was strewn with the wounded and dying. I saw the man 
who had tried to kill me, and who was not yet dead, so I 
placed him more comfortably away from the white horse 
near which he had fallen. All the houses in the village 
(either Kircova or Malierva) and the whole of the Russian 
camp were covered with half-burnt corpses. M. Gilet had 
his leg broken by a ball, and died a few days afterwards. 
The sharp-shooters (skirmishers) and the light companies 
lost more men than we. 

During the morning I met Captain Debonnez, who 
came from my country and commanded a company in 
the Guards. He was looking for me to see if I were all 
safe. He said he had lost the third of his company, 
besides a Sub- Lieutenant and his Sergeant-Major. 

After this bloody contest the Russians abandoned their 
positions without going very far off, and we remained on 
the battle-field during the day and night of the i6th and 

112 



THE BATTLE OF KRASNOE 

17th, keeping on the qui-vive, however, all the time, 
neither being able to rest a moment nor even to warm 
ourselves. 

During the day, while we were all talking together of 
our miserable discomfort and of the night's battle, the 
Adjutant-Major, Delaitre, came up. He was the worst 
man I have ever known and the cruellest, doing wrong 
for the mere pleasure of doing it. He began to talk, and, 
greatly to our surprise, seemed much troubled by Beloque's 
tragic death. 

• Poor Beloque !' he said ; * I am very sorry I ever 
behaved badly to him.' 

Just then a voice in my ear (what voice I never knew) 
said : 

' He will die very soon.' 

Others heard it also. He seemed sincerely sorry for all 
his bad behaviour to those under him, especially to us 
non-commissioned officers. I do not thmk there was a 
man in the regiment who would not have rejoiced to see 
him carried off by a bullet. We called him Peter the 
Cruel. 

On the morning of the 17th, almost before it was light, 
we took up our firearms, and forming into columns, 
set out to take up our position by the side of the road, 
opposite to the field of battle. When we got there we 
saw a part of the Russian army on a little hill in front of 
us, near a wood, and therefore deployed in a line front- 
ing them. On our left and behind us was a ravine which 
crossed the road. This hollow sheltered all those near it. 
On our right were the Fusiliers-Chasseurs, with the head 
of their regiment a gunshot from the town. In front of us, 
250 yards off, was a regiment of the Young Guard, com- 
manded by General Luron. Further still on the right 
were the old Grenadiers and Chasseurs. The whole was 

11^ I 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

commanded by the Emperor himself, on foot. Walking 
with firm steps, as if on a grand parade day, he placed 
himself in the midst of the field of battle, opposite the 
enemy's batteries. 

I was with two of my friends, Grangier and Leboude, 
behind Adjutant-Major Delaitre. We were within half- 
range of the Russian artillery, and directly they caught 
sight of us they opened fire. Adjutant-Major Delaitre 
was the first man to fall ; a ball had taken off his legs, 
just above his knees and his long riding-boots. He fell 
without a cry, nor did he utter one at all. He was leading 
his horse, the bridle on his right arm. We stopped, as he 
filled up the path we walked on ; we were forced to stride 
over him to get on at all, and as I was next after him I 
did so the first. I looked at him as I passed. His eyes 
were opened, and his teeth chattered convulsively. I went 
nearer to listen. He raised his voice and said : 

* For God's sake take my pistols and blow my brains 
out !' 

No one dared do this service for him, and without answer- 
ing we went on our way — most luckily as it happened, for 
before we had gone six yards a second discharge carried 
off three of our men behind us, killing the Adjutant- 
Major. 

Directly afterwards the Emperor arrived, and we began 
fighting. The enemy made terrible havoc in our ranks 
with their artillery. We had only a few pieces to reply 
with, and some of them were soon dismounted. Our 
men died without moving, and until two o'clock in the 
afternoon we maintained this dreadful position. 

The Russians sent a part of their army to take up a 
position on the road beyond Krasnoe, and to cut off our 
retreat ; but the Emperor anticipated them by sending a 
battalion of the Old Guard there. 



THE BATTLE OF KRASNOE 

While we stood thus exposed to the enemy's fire, our 
numbers continually diminishing, we saw to our left the 
remainder of Marshal Davoust's army in the midst of a 
swarm of Cossacks calmly marching towards us. With 
them was the canteen man's cart containing his wife and 
children. A ball intended for us struck them, and we 
heard the woman's shrieks, but we could not tell whether 
one of them was killed or only wounded. 

Just then the Dutch Grenadiers of the Guard abandoned 
an important position, which the Russians instantly filled 
with their artillery, and directed their fire against us. 
Our position after this was untenable. A regiment sent 
to recover the ground was forced to retire ; another moved 
forward as far as the foot of the batteries, but was stopped 
by a body of Cuirassiers. It then retired to the left of the 
battery, forming into a square. The enemy's cavalry came 
on to the attack again, but were received by a heavy fire, 
which killed a great many. A second charge was made, 
and met with the same reception. A third charge, sup- 
ported by grape-shot, was successful. The regiment was 
overwhelmed. The enemy broke into the square and 
finished off the remainder with their swords. These poor 
fellows, nearly all very young, having their hands and feet 
mostly frost-bitten, had no power to defend themselves, 
and were absolutely massacred. 

We witnessed this scene without being able to help our 
comrades. Eleven men only returned ; the rest were all 
killed, wounded, or taken prisoners, driven by sword- 
thrusts into a little wood opposite. The Colonel himself,* 
covered with wounds, was made prisoner, with several 
other officers. 

I must not omit to say that as we were getting into 

* Colonel Luron.— Anchor's Note. 

\ 1 5 I — 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

order of battle, the Colonel had given the word of com- 
mand : ' Drapeaux, guides generaux sur la ligne !' 

I was therefore giiide general on the right of our regi- 
ment. But they omitted to give the order for our return, 
and as I made it a point of honour to remain at my post, 
there I stayed for more than an hour, holding the butt- 
end of my musket in the air, and in spite of the bullets 
flying round me, I did not move. 

By two o'clock we had lost a third of our men, but the 
Fusiliers-Chasseurs were the worst off of all, as, being 
nearer to the town, they were exposed to a more deadl}' 
fire. For the last half-hour the Emperor had drawn back 
with the first regiments of the Guard to the highroad. 
We remained on the field alone with a very few men from 
different corps, facing more than 50,000 of the enemy. 
Marshal Mortier then ordered us to retreat, and we began 
to move, drawing off at walking pace as if we were on 
parade, the Russian artillery overwhelming us with grape- 
shot all the while. We took with us the least dangerously 
wounded of our men. 

It was a terrible scene as we left the field, for when our 
poor wounded men saw that they were being abandoned, 
surrounded by the enemy, many of them dragged them- 
selves painfully on their knees after us, staining the snow 
with their blood, and raising their hands to heaven with 
heart-rending cries, imploring us to help them. But what 
could we do ? The same fate was in store for us, for at 
every moment men fell from our ranks, and were in their 
turn abandoned. 

I saw, as I passed the position occupied by the Fusiliers- 
Chasseurs, several of my friends stretched dead on the 
snow, horribly mutilated by grape-shot. A man named 
Capon, from Bapaume, was one of my best friends. 

After passing the Fusiliers- Chasseurs, as we entered the 

116 



THE isATTLE OF KRASNOE 

town, we saw on our left some pieces of artillery, firing at 
the Russians for our protection ; they were served and 
supported by about forty men, gunners and Light Infantry 
— all that was left of General Longchamp's brigade. He 
was there himself with the remnant of his men, determined 
to save them or die with them. 

As soon as he caught sight of our Colonel, he came to 
nim with open arms. They embraced as two friends who 
had not met for long, and who perhaps were never to meet 
again. The General, with his eyes full of tears, showed 
the two guns and the few remaining men to our Colonel. 

' Look,' he said; ' that is all I have left !' 

They had , been through the Egyptian campaign to- 
gether. 

After this battle, Kutusow, the General-in-Chief of the 
Russian army, was heard to say that the French, so far 
from being disheartened by their cruel sufferings, only 
rushed more madly on the guns which destroyed them. 
Wilson,* the English General who was present at this 
battle, called it the Heroes' Battle. The word ought to 
be applied to us, and to us only, who, with a few thousand 
men, fought against the whole Russian force of go,ooo. 

General Longchamps, with his poor remainder, was 
forced to leave his guns, all the horses being killed, and 
follow our retreat, taking advantage of what shelter he 
could find behind houses or banks as he went. 

We were scarcely within the town of Krasnoe when the 
Russians, their guns mounted on sledges, took up a position 
near the outlying houses, and opened a fire of grape-shot 
on us. Three men of our company were wounded. A 
ball, which grazed my musket and split the stock, struck a 
young drummer on the head and killed him on the spot. 
The town of Krasnoe is divided in two by a deep hollow, 

* He was serving in the Russian army. 
117 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

which must be crossed. Arrived there, we saw at the 
bottom a herd of oxen dead of cold and hunger. So stiff 
were they frozen, that our sappers could scarcely cut them 
up with hatchets. Only their heads were visible, their 
eyes still open ; their bodies were covered with snow. 
These bullocks belonged to the army, and had not been 
able to reach us : the extreme cold and want of fodder 
had killed them. 

A large convent in this wretched town and all the houses 
were filled with wounded, who shrieked in despair when 
they heard they were to be left to the Russians. We were 
forced to leave them thus to a savage and brutal enemy, 
who stripped and robbed these unfortunate men without 
pity for their wounds or their condition. 

The Russians still followed us, but slowly, and they 
were unable to do us much harm. Our road was through 
a deep cutting, and the bullets passed over our heads ; the 
cavalry on our right also prevented the enemy coming to 
close quarters. 

At a quarter of a league's distance from the town things 
grew quieter. We walked on sadly and silently, thinking 
of our dreadful situation, and of our unfortunate comrades 
left in the hands of the enemy. I seemed still to hear 
them begging for help; and looking back, we could see 
some of the slightly wounded already stripped almost 
naked by the Russians, and left in that condition. We 
were luckily able to save the poor fellows — at least, for the 
time, and we spared all we could to cover them. 

That night the Emperor slept at Liadoui, a village built 
of wood. Our regiment camped a little further off. As I 
passed through the village I stopped near a wretched 
hovel to warm myself at a fire. There I had the good 
fortune to meet Sergeant Guignard again — from my own 
village — and his Hungarian cantiniere. They gave me a 

ii8 



MELLfi THE DRAGOON 

little oatmeal broth and some horseflesh. I was badly in 
want of the food, as I was shockingly weak, having eaten 
hardly anything for two days. The sergeant told me that 
their regiment had suffered considerably in the battle, and 
their numbers were much diminished, but not nearly as 
greatly as ours ; that he had thought much of me, and 
was heartily glad to see me again with a whole skin. He 
asked me after Captain Debonnez, but I had not seen him 
since the i6th. I left him to go back to my regiment, 
encamped near the highroad. We spent a dreadful night; 
there was a high wind, and half-melted snow was falling, 
which wetted us through, and we had very little fire. All 
this, however, was nothing compared to what we went 
through afterwards. 

During this dreadful night many of the sharp-shooters 
came to warm themselves at our fire. I asked them for 
news of several of my friends, especially of two from my 
part who were in the Velites with me. One was M. Alex- 
andre Legrand, of the Quatre fils Aymon at Valenciennes ; 
and the other, M. Laporte, from Cassel, near Lille, had 
been killed by a grape-shot. 

At midnight one of our sentinels told me he could see a 
man on horseback appearing to come from our side. I 
ran at once with two of our men to see who it could be. 
I could distinguish the horseman perfectly, and in front of 
him a foot soldier, whom he was apparently forcing on 
before him. When they got near us I recognised a 
Dragoon of the Guard, who had made his way into the 
Russian camp to get food for himself and his horse. He 
had disguised himself by means of the helmet of a Russian 
Cuirassier whom he had killed the day before. He had 
brought away from the enemy's camp a bundle of straw 
and a little flour, and had wounded one sentinel and 
knocked down another, whom he made prisoner and 

119 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

brought along with him. This brave fellow was called 
Melle, and he came from Conde. He stayed with us for 
the rest of the night. He said that he had run this risk 
for his horse, called Cadet, and not fo himself; at any 
cost he had determined to get th€ animal some food. ' I 
I save my horse, he will save me afterwards.' This was 
the second time he had got inside the Russian camp since 
leaving Smolensk. On the first occasion he had brought 
back a horse already harnessed. 

He was fortunate enough to return to France with his 
horse. They had already been through the Prussian 
and Polish campaigns of 1806-7 together, in Spain in 
1808, in Germany in 1809, in Spain again 1810-11, and 
in Russia 1812 ; afterwards in Saxony in 1813, and 
France 1814. The poor horse was finally killed at 
Waterloo, after being through more than twelve great 
battles commanded by the Emperor, and over thirty 
smaller engagements. I met Melle again during this 
wretched campaign on a lake breaking a hole in the ice 
with a hatchet to get water for his horse; and another 
time I saw him at the top of a burning barn, in peril of 
his life, getting straw from the roof for him, for the horses 
were as badly off as we were. The poor animals had to 
gnaw at the trees to feed themselves, until in their turn 
they fed us. 

After this others followed Melle's example and got into 
the Russian camp for provisions. Many of them were 
seized, and died afterwards. Our destitution was now so 
great that our men left their regiments at the least sign of 
a road in the faint hope of its leading to some village — if 
one can give that name to the collection of wretched 
hovels made out of tree-trunks, and containing absolutely 
nothing. I could never discover what these peasants 
lived on. Our men would come back sometimes bringing 

120 



MELLE THE DRAGOON 

bits of bread as black as coal, and filled with long pieces 
of straw and grains of barley, so terribly hard that no 
teeth could bite into them ; and, besides, our lips were all 
split and cracked by frost. During all this miserable 
campaign I never saw a man bring so much as a cow or a 
sheep with him. "What these savages live on no one can 
tell. They have no beasts, that is certain, or we should 
have seen some. It is the devil's own country, for it is 
hell all through. 



121 



CHAPTER VII. 

THE RETREAT GOES ON — I TAKE A WIFE — DISCOURAGEMENT — 
I LOSE SIGHT OF MY COMRADES — DRAMATIC SCENE — MEET- 
ING WITH PICARD. 

On November i8, the day after the Battle of Krasnoe, we 
set out very early from our bivouac. The march was a 
sad and weary one, and terribly tiring. There was a 
thaw ; our feet were wet through ; and all day the fog 
was so thick we could see nothing. Our men were still 
in some sort of order, but the fighting of the preceding 
days and the forced abandonment of their imploring 
comrades had demoralized them ; the same fate, no 
doubt, they thought was in store for them. 

I was terribly tired that day. One of the men in our 
company named Labbe, seeing that I could scarcely walk, 
offered to carry my knapsack for me, as he had lost his 
own the day before. I gave it to him, as I knew he was 
honest ; but it was like trusting my life in his hands, as 
the knapsack contained more than a pound of rice and 
oatmeal, picked up by chance at Smolensk, and kept by 
me for some desperate emergency, when there would be 
no more horses to eat. On that day the Emperor went 
on foot, carrying a stick. 

At night it froze again, and the roads became so slippery 
that we fell down continually, and many were seriously 

122 



THE RETREAT GOES ON 

hurt. I walked last of the company, keeping an eye, as 
far as possible, on the man with my knapsack, and some- 
times regretting that I had given it up, and resolving to 
get it back when we stopped for the night. When night 
came, it was so dark that it was impossible to see any- 
thing. I called out ' Labbe ! Labbe !' and I heard him 
answer, 'Here, sergeant !' but when I called again later, 
one of our men told me that he had just fallen down, and 
was probably following the regiment. I did not worry 
myself about it, as in a short time we should be obliged 
to come to a halt, and take up a position for the night. 
When we did so, the whole army was collected, except 
Marshal Ney's corps d'armee, which had dropped behind, 
and which we feared was lost. 

Everyone did as best he could during this wretched 
night. Several of us non-commissioned officers joined 
together, and took possession of a barn (we were close to 
a village without being aware of it). Many of the men 
had entered with us, but those who came too late for that 
mounted on the roof. Just then we were told that further 
on there was a church (Greek) intended for our regiment's 
shelter, but that now it was filled with men from different 
regiments, who would let no one else enter. 

On learning exactly where the church was, a dozen of 
us set out to find it. When we arrived, the men inside 
tried to prevent our entering. They were Germans, 
Italians, and a few Frenchmen, who tried, to frighten us 
by presenting the points of their bayonets at us. We 
answered them in the same fashion, and forced an 
entrance. They drew back a little, and an Italian 
called out : 

' Do as I do— load !' 

'Ours are loaded — ready!' said one of our sergeant- 
majors, and we were on the point of a fierce encounter, 

123 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

when reinforcements arrived for us in the shape of some 
men from our regiment ; so seeing they had nothing to 
gain by fighting, and that we were not disposed to let 
them stay with us, the men in the church decided to leave. 

Unfortunately for them, the night grew much colder, 
with a high wind and a fall of snow, and the next morning 
on going out we found many of the poor wretches dead 
by the side of the road. Others had dropped down further 
on, while trying to find a place of shelter. We passed by 
these dead bodies in silence. We ought, no doubt, to 
have felt guilty and miserable at this sad spectacle, of 
which we were partly the cause ; but we had arrived at 
the point of complete indifference to everything, even the 
most tragic events, saying to each other that soon we 
should be eating dead men, as there would be no more 
horses left. 

An hour afterwards we got to Doubrowna, a little town 
partly inhabited by Jews, where all the houses were built 
of wood. Here the Emperor had passed the night with 
the Grenadiers and Chasseurs, and part of the artillery. 
They had been kept under arms all night by a false alarm. 
We crossed this town on our way to Orcha. After an 
hour's march, we had to pass over a deep ravine, which 
the baggage had enormous difficulty in crossing, and 
several horses died. At last, during the afternoon, we 
arrived at this little fortified town, garrisoned by men 
from different regiments. These were men who had 
stayed behind, and had come up in detachments to rejoin 
the Grand Army. There were amongst them some 
gendarmes and a few Poles. They were horror-struck 
at seeing our miserable condition, and at the enormous 
number of stragglers in such disorganization. Part of 
the Guard were kept in the town to establish a little 
order, and a small distribution of flour and brandy was 

124 



THE RETREAT GOES ON 

made from some stores found there. We found a pontoon 
train, and a great deal of artillery, horses and harness ; 
and by an extraordinary fatality we burned the boats 
forming the bridges, in order to make use of the horses 
to draw the guns. We little knew what was in store for 
us at the Berezina, where the bridge would have been of 
untold service to us. 

We were now only seven or eight thousand men in the 
Guard, the remnant of 35,000. Although most of us 
marched in order, a good many straggled painfully behind. 
As I have already said, the Emperor and part of the Guard 
stayed in the town, and the rest of the army camped out- 
side. During the night Marshal Ney arrived with the 
remainder of his corps d'armee. 

Two or three thousand remained to him out of 7,000. 
The Emperor's joy was unbounded when he heard that 
the Marshal was s^fe. 

We stayed here over the 20th, and I spent the time 
looking for my friend with my knapsack, but in vain. On 
the 2 1st we set out without my having found him, and I 
began to despair, although I heard from many that he 
had been seen. 

At a short distance from Orcha we heard musket-shots, 
and stopping for a moment, we saw some sledges inter- 
cepted by Cossacks. These men joined our ranks and 
we went forward again. I searched for my man and the 
knapsack among the sledges, but again fruitlessly. We 
stayed that night in a village called Kokanow, of which 
nothing remained but a barn and two or three houses. 

On the 22nd, after a wretched night, we set out very 
early, walking with great difficulty over a thawed, muddy 
road. At mid-day we reached Toloczin, where the Em- 
peror had slept. V/e halted at the other side of the town, 
and drew up by the side of the road. While we were 

125 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

there M. Cesarisse, an officer in our company, told me 
that he had seen Labbe near a fire busy frying biscuits, 
and that he had ordered him to join his regiment. He 
answered that he was coming directly, but a horde of 
Cossacks came and took possession of the sledges, and 
most probably he had been taken also. So good-bye to my 
knapsack and its contents, which I had so set my heart 
on taking back to France ! How proud I should have 
been to say, ' I brought this from Moscow !' 

However, to make quite sure, I thought I would see for 
myself, and I turned back to the end of the village, which 
was full of men from all regiments, walking about inde- 
pendently and obeying no orders but their own. I saw 
the Cossacks in the distance carrying off their prisoners — 
and no doubt my poor knapsack also. 

I was looking about me to right and left, when I caught 
sight of a woman, dressed in a soldier's cloak, looking 
curiously at me, and I could not help thinking I had seen 
her before. She recognised me by my bearskin, and being 
the first to speak, she said she had seen me at Smolensk. 
I remembered her as the woman in the cellar. She told 
me that the brigands had been taken at Krasnoe, before 
we got there ; that they were in a house where they had 
beaten her, because she would not wash their shirts, and 
she had gone out to get water. She had seen some Rus- 
sians and had run away. As for the brigands, they had 
fought desperately, trying to save their money, for they 
had much, she said, gold and jewels above all ; but it had 
ended by their being killed, wounded, and plundered. She 
herself had been saved when the Imperial Guard arrived. 

She would have told me much more if I had had time 
to listen to her. I asked her who was with her, and she 
said no one ; that since the day her husband was killed 
she had been with the brigands ; that she was now alone, 

126 



I TAKE A WIFE 

but that, if I would take her under my protection, she would 
take good care of me, and I should be doing her a very 
great service. I consented at once, never thinking of the 
figure I should cut in the regiment when I arrived there 
with a woman. 

As she went she asked me what had become of my 
knapsack. So I told her its histor}^ and how I had lost 
it. She told me not to worry about it, as she had a well- 
filled bag herself. She also carried a basket on her arm, 
and she added that if I could find a house or a stable to 
change in, she could give me some fresh linen. I accepted 
this joyfully, but as we were looking for a suitable place 
we heard the call tp arms, and I heard the drums beating. 
I told the woman to follow me, and wait for me on the road. 

When I joined my company, the sergeant-major asked 
me if I had found Labbe and the knapsack. I said no, 
and that I had given up all idea of finding them, but that 
instead I had found a woman. 

' A woman !' he exclaimed ; ' what is the good of that ? 
She can't wash your linen for you, as you have not got 
any.' 

* She will give me some.' 

* Ah,' he said, ' that's a different thing. And what about 
feeding her ?' 

' She will do as I do.' 

Just then the Emperor came past with King Murat 
and Prince Eugene. The Emperor then placed himself 
amongst the Grenadiers and Chasseurs and made them an 
address, telling them that the Russians were waiting for 
us at the crossing of the Berezina, and had sworn that not 
one of us should pass over. Then, drawing his sword and 
raising his voice, he cried : 

' Let us all swear to die fighting rather than not see 
our country again !' 

127 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

The oath was taken. Bearskins and caps were waved 
at the points of bayonets, and shouts were heard of ' Vive 
I'Empereur !' Marshal Mortier made us a similar address, 
and was received with the same enthusiasm, and so on 
with all the regiments. 

It was a splendid moment, and for the time made us 
forget our miseries. If the Russians had only been within 
our reach then, we should have made short work of them, 
even had their numbers been six times greater than ours. 
We remained in this position till the right wing of the 
column began to move. 

I had not forgotten my ' wife,' and while waiting for the 
regiment to start I went in search of her, but she was 
nowhere to be seen. She had been engulfed in the torrent 
of Prince Eugene's thousands. They and the corps 
belonging to Marshals Ney and Davoust were in com- 
plete disorder ; three-quarters of them were sick and 
wounded, and the rest utterly demoralized and indifferent 
to everything. 

I found myself at this moment near Marshal Lefebvre. 
He was alone and on foot in the middle of the road, 
shouting in his German accent, ' Come, my men, let us 
get together ! Better large battalions than a pack of 
brigands and cowards.' He spoke to the men who were 
continually straggling away without apparent reason from 
their corps, sometimes in front, sometimes behind. 

I made several inquiries about my ' wife,' as I so badly 
wanted the change of linen she had promised me, but I 
never saw her again, and so I found myself bereft both of 
her and of my knapsack. 

Walking thus with the rabble, I had got far in advance 
of my regiment, and I stopped to rest by a fire left from a 
bivouac. 

Up to the Battle of Krasnoe, I had managed to keep up 

T28 



DISCOURAGEMENT 

my spirits, in spite of all the miseries I had to endure. I 
felt that the greater the danger and suffering, the greater 
the glory and honour, and my patience had astonished 
my comrades. But since the terrible encounters at 
Krasnoe, and, above all, since the news that two of my 
friends (besides Beloque and Capon) had been, one killed 
and the other mortally wounded — (sic). 

To complete my misery, a sledge came up and stopped 
close to me. I asked who the wounded man was, and 
they told me it was an officer of their regiment. It turned 
out to be poor Legrand, who related to me the way he 
had been wounded. His comrade, Laporte, from Cassel, 
near Lille, had stayed behind invalided at Krasnoe ; but 
hearing that his regiment was fighting, he set out to join 
it. Hardly, however, had he taken his place in the ranks, 
when he had both his legs broken. Legrand, seeing 
Laporte arrive, came to speak to him, and the same shot 
wounded him in the right leg. Laporte remained dead 
on the battlefield, and Legrand was taken to the town ; 
he was placed in a wretched Russian cart drawn by a 
miserable horse, but the cart broke up the first day. 
Fortunately for him, close by was a sledge, into which he 
was moved ; four men of his regiment were with him, and 
he had travelled in this manner for six days. I bade fare- 
well to the unfortunate Legrand, and wished him a safe 
journey ; he answered that he trusted himself to the care 
of God and the friendship of his brave comrades. One 
of the men then took the horse by the bridle, another 
gave it a blow, and two pushed from behind ; with great 
difficulty the sledge was thus set in motion. As I saw it 
off, I thought with such equipment it could hardly go 
much further. 

After this I never felt the same ; I was depressed, and 
a prey to gloomy forebodings. My head ached and burned; 

129 K 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

I was in a fever. No doubt it was greatly owing to fatigue, 
as we were now obliged to start very early in the morning, 
and walk till very late. The days were so short ; it was not 
light till eight o'clock, and it was dark by four in the after- 
noon. This was the reason of so many unfortunate men 
losing their way, for it was always night when we arrived at 
the bivouac, and all the remains of the different corps were 
in terrible confusion. At all hours of the night we heard the 
weak, worn-out voices of new arrivals calling out ' Fourth 
Corps !' ' First Corps !' ' Third Corps !' ' Imperial Guard !' 
and then the voices of others lying down with no strength 
left, forcing themselves to answer, ' Here, comrades !' 
They were not trying any longer to find their regiments, 
but simply the corps d'armee to which they had belonged, 
and which now included the strength of two regiments at 
most, where a fortnight earlier there had been thirty. 

No one now knew anything about himself, or could 
mention which regiment he belonged to. Many, after 
walking the whole day, were forced to wander about half 
the night to find their particular corps. They hardly ever 
succeeded ; then, not being aware of the hour of departure 
in the morning, they slept too late, and on waking found 
the Russians upon them. Thousands of men were taken 
prisoners, and perished in this way. 

I kept near the fire, standing and trembling all over, 
and leaning on my musket. Three men were sitting round 
the fire in silence, mechanically watching people passing 
in the road, seeming disposed to stay where they were, 
simply for want of strength to move. I began to be uneasy 
at not seeing my regiment pass, when I felt someone pull 
at my bearskin cloak. It was Grangier come to tell me 
that the regiment was passing ; but my eyes were so worn 
out that I could not see him, even looking straight at 
him. 



DISCOURAGEMENT 

* And the woman ?' he said. 

' Who told you anything about her ?' 

* The sergeant-major. But where is she ?' 

* I don't know ; but I do know that she has a knapsack 
full of linen, which I want badly, and if ever you meet 
her you might tell me. She is dressed in a soldier's gray 
cloak, with a sheepskin cap on her head. She wears black 
gaiters, and she carries a basket on her arm.' 

Grangier thought (as he afterwards told me) that I was 
light-headed, and, taking me by the arm, he led me down 
the road, saying : 

' We must get on, or we shall not catch up with the 
regiment.' 

We came up with it, however, after passing the thousands 
of men from all kinds of regiments who walked confusedly, 
hardly able to drag themselves along. We foresaw, on 
looking at them, that the journey, if long, would be a fatal 
one to most of us. 

The march was indeed a long one ; we passed a place 
where the Emperor was supposed to sleep, although he 
had got far in advance of it. A great number of men 
stopped here, for it was very late, and we heard that two 
leagues separated us yet from our bivouac in a large forest. 

The road here was very wide, and bordered on each side 
by birch-trees.* There was plenty of room for us and the 
carts and waggons ; but when evening came on there was 
nothing to be seen all the length of the road but dead 
horses, and the further we advanced, the more the road 
became blocked with carts and dying horses : whole teams 
succumbed at once from fatigue. The men who could go 
no further stopped and made bivouacs underneath large 
trees ; here they said they had wood at hand to make fires 

* Birches in Russia grow to a great height. — Aiiihors Note. 

131 K-2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

from the broken carts, and horseflesh to eat, and these 
they would not find further on. 

For a long time I had walked alone in the midst of 
a miscellaneous rabble, forcing myself on to reach the 
camping-place arranged. The road became more difficult 
at every step, as it had begun to freeze again on the top 
of the half melted snow, and I fell continually. In the 
midst of these miseries the night suddenly fell. 

The north wind had redoubled its fury. I had lost sight 
of my comrades ; several men, lost like myself, strangers 
to me, who did not belong to my regiment, by superhuman 
efforts dragged themselves along to come up with their 
own regiments. They did not answer when I spoke to 
them ; they were too weak even for that. Others fell 
down dying, never to rise again. Soon I was alone, with 
only dead bodies along the road to guide me. The trees 
had quite disappeared ; it was perhaps seven o'clock. The 
snow, now falling heavily, prevented my seeing the direc- 
tion in which I was going, and the violent wind had 
already filled up the traces of the advancing column. 

Up till that time I had worn my bearskin cloak with 
the fur outside, but now, seeing what an awful night was 
in store for me, I stopped a moment, and turned the fur 
inside. Owing to this I was able luckily to withstand the 
cold of this disastrous n ght, falling to twenty-two degrees 
of frost. I arranged the cloak over my right shoulder in 
the direction of the wind, and I walked thus for an hour, 
during which I am certain I only went a quarter of a 
league ; for, often seized by a bhnding storm of snow, I 
had to turn round and thus retrace my steps without being 
aware of it. It was only the sight of the dead bodies 
of men and horses, and the mass of broken vehicles I 
had passed before, that convinced me I was in the wrong 
direction. I had then to take my bearings again. 

132 



I LOSE SIGHT OF MY COMRADES 

Either the moon or a faint Northern Light appeared in 
the sky at intervals. Black clouds shot swiftly across this 
light, but when it was clear it enabled me to distinguish 
one object from another. I saw far off a black mass which 
I imagined to be the immense forest we had to cross before 
reaching the Berezina, for now we were in Lithuania. I 
made a guess that this forest was perhaps a league off. 

Unfortunately a terrible sleepiness, the certain fore- 
runner of death, began to come over me. I felt quite 
exhausted ; my legs refused to carr}^ me further. I had 
fallen down half asleep several times, and had I not been 
roused each time by the cold, all would have been over 
with me. 

The road was here completely blockaded by dead men 
and horses, preventing me from dragging myself along, 
for I had no longer the strength to lift my feet from the 
ground. Whenever I fell it seemed as if I were dragged 
down by the unfortunate men stretched on the snow. 
Often these men would try to catch hold of the legs of 
those who passed, imploring their help, and many, in 
stooping to give help, fell themselves, not to rise again. 

I walked on aimlessly for about ten minutes. I staggered 
as if I were drunk ; my knees trembled under my weight. 
I thought my last hour had come at last, when all at once 
I stumbled over a sword on the ground, and fell all my 
length, stupefied, my chin having struck the butt-end of 
my musket. Coming to myself a little and getting on my 
knees, I picked up my musket, and was preparing to stand, 
when I saw a stream of blood coming from my mouth, and 
with a cry of despair, trembling with terror, I fell back 
again. 

I had been heard by a miserable man lying a few yards 
off, and in a feeble voice he begged me to help him — I ! 
so much in need myself. * Stop ! help us !' 

133 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

The voice ceased ; but I remained, still trying to find 
out who had spoken. Hearing nothing more, I began to 
think my senses had deceived me, and I called out as 
loud as I possibly could : 

'Where are you?' adding to myself, ' If I only had a 
companion, we could walk on for the rest of the night 
encouraging each other.' 

Then I heard the voice again, sadder and feebler this 
time : 

* Come here and help.' 

At that moment the moon came out, and I saw two 
men about ten yards off — one stretched at full length, 
and the other sitting near him. With great difficulty I 
struggled over a ditch filled with snow, and got near 
them. The man sitting laughed like a madman when I 
spoke to him, and said, ' Don't you know — you mustn't 
forget !' and began laughing again. 

I recognised the terrible laughter of death. The other 
pian was still living ; turning his head a little, he said 
these last words to me : 

* Save my uncle — help him. I am dying!' 

I spoke to him, but he said no more. Then I turned 
to the other, and encouraged him to rise and come with 
me. He looked at me without speaking, and I saw that 
he was wrapped in a great fur-lined cloak which he tried 
to throw off. I endeavoured, without success, to help 
him to rise; but on taking hold of his arm I noticed 
that he wore officer's epaulets. He began talking inco- 
herently about reviews and parades, and ended by falling 
on one side with his face in the snow. I was obliged to 
leave him ; if I had remained I must myself have succumbed 
to the same fate. Before I left I picked up a pouch lying 
on the ground, in the hope of finding something inside, 
but it was full of rubbish and papers only. Having regained 

134 



I LOSE SIGHT OF MY COMRADES 

the road, I walked slowly along, listening as I went, as 
now I constantly seemed to hear cries of distress. 

Soon I began to walk faster, in the hope of coming to 
some bivouac, and at last I got to a point in the road 
completely blocked up with dead horses and broken carts. 
The bodies of men from various regiments were scattered 
round. Several belonged to the Young Guard, recognisable 
by their shakos. In this immense cemetery and this awful 
silence I was alone, a prey to the most gloomy thoughts — 
of my comrades from whom I was separated, my country, 
my relations — and I began to cry like a child. The tears 
relieved me, and gradually my courage came back. 

Close to me I found a small hatchet, such as every 
company carries in a campaign. I tried to cut off a piece 
from one of the horses, but the flesh was frozen so hard 
that this was impossible. I had spent the remainder of 
my strength, and I fell exhausted, but the exertion had 
warmed me a little. I had picked up with the hatchet a 
few pieces of ice, which I now found to be blood from the 
horse. I ate a little of it, and put the rest carefully in my 
knapsack ; and feeling stronger, I set out again, trusting 
to God's mercy ; taking care to avoid the dead bodies, I 
went on, stopping and feeling my way whenever a cloud 
passed over the moon. 

After walking for some time, I noticed at a short distance 
off something I took for a waggon. When I got nearer 
I saw it was a canteen cart belonging to a regiment of 
the Young Guard. The horses which had drawn it were 
not only dead, but partly cut in pieces for eating. Around 
the cart were seven dead bodies almost naked and half 
covered with snow ; one of them was still covered with a 
cloak and a sheepskin. On stooping to look at the body, 
I saw that it was a woman. The instinct of self-preserva- 
tion was at this time the first with me, and, forgetting 

135 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

that I had ineffectually tried the same thing a short time 
before, I set to work to hack off a piece of one of the 
horses. I found that this time again I was utterly unable 
to do it, and so I decided to spend the night in the cart, 
which was covered. I approached the dead woman to 
take the sheepskin for a covering, but it was impossible 
to move it. Noticing, however, that she wore a leather 
strap round her body, buckled on the other side, and that 
the strap must be unfastened, I put my musket under her 
body to act as a lever ; but I had hardly done so, when a 
piercing cry came from the cart. ' Marie,' it said, ' Marie, 
give me something to drink ! I am dying !' 

I was stupefied. The same voice repeated directty 
afterwards, ' Ah, my God !' 

Mounting on the body of the horse in the shafts, I 
steadied myself by the top of the cart. I asked what was 
the matter. A feeble voice answered with some difficulty, 
' Something to drink.' 

I thought at once of the frozen blood in the pouch, and 
tried to get down to fetch it j but the moon suddenly dis- 
appeared behind a great black cloud, and I as suddenly 
fell on the top of three dead bodies. My head was down 
lower than my legs, and my face resting on one of the 
dead hands. I had been accustomed for long enough to 
this sort of company, but now — I suppose because I was 
alone — an awful feeling of terror came over me. It was 
like a nightmare. I could not move, and I began scream- 
ing like a madman, as if something were holding me. 
But, in spite of all my efforts, I could not move. I tried 
to help myself up by my arm, but I found my hand on a 
face, and my thumb went into its mouth ! 

At that moment the moon came out and showed me all 
my dreadful surroundings. I shuddered all over, left 
hold of my support, and fell back again immediately. 

136 



I LOSE SIGHT OF MY COMRADES 

But a change came over me now ; I felt ashamed of my 
weakness, and a wild sort of frenzy, instead of terror, 
took possession of me. I got up, raving and swearing, 
and trod on anything that came near me — faces, arms, 
and legs, not caring which ; and I cursed the sky above 
me, defying it, and taking my musket, I struck at the 
cart — very likely I struck also at the poor devils under my 
feet. 

When I felt calmer, I decided to spend the night in the 
cart, as some sort of shelter from the cold ; and taking a 
piece of the frozen blood from the pouch, I climbed inside, 
feeling for the man who had asked me for drink, and who 
had ever since uttered feeble cries. When I got near 
him, I saw that his left leg was amputated. 

I asked him the name of his regiment, but he did not 
answer. So, finding his head, I put a bit of the ice into his 
mouth. The man next him was as cold and hard as 
marble. I tried to move him, so as to take his place, and 
be able to leave the next day with those who were still 
behind, but I could not do it. I now saw that he had 
only a few moments to live, so I covered him with two 
cloaks belonging to the dead man, and searched in the 
cart for anything I might find useful. Finding nothing, I 
turned round to speak to the man again. I got no reply, 
and, passing my hand over his face, I found it quite cold, 
and the piece of ice I had given him still between his lips. 
His sufferings were over. 

I now prepared to leave, but waited to take another 
look at the dead woman, thinking it might be Marie the 
cantiniere, whom I knew well as coming from my native 
country. I looked at her carefully by the light of the 
moon, and satisfied myself that it was not she. 

With my musket under the right arm like a hunter, 
two pouches, one of red leather and the other of gray 

137 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

canvas, which I had just found, slung across me, a piece 
of the frozen blood in my mouth, and my hands in my 
pockets, I started off. It was perhaps nine o'clock ; the 
snow had stopped falling, the wind had abated in strength, 
and the cold was not quite so intense. I continued to 
walk in the direction of the wood. 

At the end of half an hour the moon disappeared again. 
This was terrible for me. I stopped for a few minutes, 
stamping my feet on the ground, to prevent their being 
frozen, and waiting for the light to come out again ; but I 
was disappointed in this, as the moon appeared no more. 

My eyes, however, became accustomed to the dark, and 
I could soon see well enough to go on, but all at once I 
discovered I was not on the same road. In naturally 
trying to avoid the north wind, I had turned my back to 
it. My opinion was confirmed by my not seeing any of 
the army debris on the road. 

I cannot say for how long I had been walking in this 
new direction, when I saw that I had got to the edge of a 
precipice. I made the discovery too late, however, to 
save myself, and I rolled down for at least forty feet,, 
although my fall was broken by bushes on the way. 
This time I thought that I was quite done for, and, 
closing my eyes, I resigned myself to God's will. When 
I reached the bottom I was stunned for a time, but, after 
all my adventures, I had ceased being astonished at any- 
thing, and I soon got up and began to search for my 
musket, which I had lost in my fall ; however, I decided 
to leave it and wait for daylight. As I drew my sword 
from its sheath and felt my way, I now became aware of a 
waggon close to where I had fallen, and the bodies of two 
dead horses ; and feeling something warm under my feet, 
I found I was standing on the ashes of a half-extinct lire* 
So I lay down, and bathing my hands in the ashes to 

138 



I LOSE SIGHT OF MY COMRADES 

warm them, I luckily found a few pieces of coal, and was 
able by blowing to revive a few sparks. But where could 
I get wood to relight the fire ? I dared not leave the 
ashes, for fear my sparks might be extinguished for good. 
I tore off a piece of my shirt, already in rags, made a 
match of it and lighted it. Then, feeling all round me, I 
fortunately came upon some tiny fragments of wood, and 
with much difficulty got them alight. Very soon flames 
crackled up, and in a minute or two I had quite a large 
fire. 

I could now see for several yards round me, and I 
caught sight of some large letters on the waggon, * Garde 
Imperiale. Etat Major.' Over the inscription was the 
eagle. As far as I could see, the ground was covered with 
helmets, shakos, swords, cuirasses, broken chests, empty 
portmanteaus, bits of torn clothing, saddles, costly 
schabraques, and quantities of other things. But hardly 
had I glanced round me, when I became possessed with 
the idea that this place might be near a Cossack bivouac, 
and I felt terribly frightened, and dared not keep my fire 
up any longer. If Frenchmen had been anywhere near, I 
should have seen some bivouac fires. This place, above 
all others, sheltered as it was from the wind, would have 
been chosen for a bivouac. I was at a loss whether to 
stay or go. 

While I reflected my fire had diminished, and I dared 
not put on more kindling. But at last the desire for 
warmth and rest overbore the feelings of fear. I picked 
up as much wood as I could find and piled it up near me. 
I also collected a number of schabraques to sit on, and 
wrapping myself in my bearskin cape, with my back 
against the waggon, I arranged myself for the night. 

In putting wood on the fire I had found some horse- 
flesh — enough to stay the hunger which now devoured me. 

139 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

Although covered with snow and ashes, it was more than 
I had dared to hope for. Since the evening before, I had 
eaten nothing but half a dead raven I had found, and a 
few spoonfuls of gruel mixed with grains of oats and rye, 
and salted with powder. 

I hardly waited for my cutlet to be warmed through 
before I bit into it, in spite of the ash which covered it. 
In this way I made my miserable dinner, looking round 
me from time to time, to make sure that things were safe. 

My situation was slightly better than before. I was 
not obliged to keep on walking, I was sheltered from the 
wind and cold, I had a fire for warmth, and food ; but I 
was so terribly tired that I fell asleep while I was eating — 
sleep broken, however, by fear, and by dreadful pains in 
my legs. I felt as if I had been beaten all over. I do 
not know how long I slept, but on awaking there was 
still no appearance of dayhght. In Russia the nights now 
are so long, and in summer there is scarcely any night 
at all. 

I had fallen asleep with my feet in the ashes, and when 
I woke they still felt warm. I had learnt by experience 
that warmth refreshes tired limbs, and soothes pain, so I 
picked up and collected all the wood I could find, put it 
on my fire, and relit it. 

I could now see round me again, and on my left caught 
sight of some object I took for an animal. As there are 
so many bears in Russia, I felt sure this must be one, 
especially as it walked on all fours. When it got to a 
distance of five or six yards off, I saw that it was a man. 
To guard against a surprise, I drew my sword, and, 
advancing towards the man, I cried, ' Who are you ?' at 
the same moment placing the point of my sword against 
his back, as I saw him to be a Russian, a real Cossack 
with a long beard. 

140 



I LOSE SIGHT OF MY COMRADES 

He raised his head and threw himself down hke a slave, 
trying to kiss my feet, and saying, ' Dobray Frantsouz,'* 
and other words which I understood to mean that he was 
frightened. If he had only known it, I was as much 
frightened as he. He knelt upright to show me a sword- 
cut he had had on his face. I noticed then, even in this 
position, his head reached to my shoulders, so that his 
full height would be over six feet. I signed to him to 
.come near the fire ; then he made me understand that he 
had another wound — a ball had struck him in the stomach. 
The sword-cut on his face was frightful. It began at the 
top of the head, and cut open his face to the chin, losing 
itself in the beard. He lay down on his back to show me 
the bullet wound, and I could see in this position that he 
was unarmed. Then, without saying anything more, he 
turned on to his side. I sat opposite to him to watch 
him. I did not wish to sleep again, as I intended before 
daylight appeared to set fire to the waggon and leave at 
once ; but suddenly the terrible thought struck me that the 
waggon might be full of powder ! 

I jumped up, tired as I was, cleared at one bound the 
fire and the poor devil lying beside it, and set off running, 
but stumbling over a cuirass in the way, I fell all my 
length on the ground. I was fortunate enough not to 
hurt myself ; I might well have done so with all the fire- 
arms lying about. I got up and walked backwards, my 
eyes fixed on the waggon, as if I expected an explosion 
every instant. At last I recovered from my terror, and 
came back to the place I had left so foolishly, for I was 
quite as safe there as twenty yards off. 

I took off the pieces of burning wood and carefully 
carried them to the place where I had fallen ; then I took 
the cuirass to gather snow in and put out the fire. But I 

* ' Bon Franqais.' — Author's Note. 
141 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

had hardly begvin this work, when I heard a flourish of 
trumpets, and after Hstening attentively, I recognised it 
for the Russian cavalry, announcing that they were not 
far off. I saw the Cossack raise his head at the sound. I 
tried to read his thoughts by his expression, for the fire 
was now bright enough for me to see his features, which 
were truly hideous. He squinted, and his eyes were 
deeply set beneath a low, prominent forehead ; his hair 
and beard were red and thick like a mane, giving him 
a wild and savage appearance. His shoulders were of 
Herculean proportions. He was probably suffering ter- 
ribly from his wound, for he writhed as he lay, and from 
time to time ground his teeth. I was listening to the 
sound of the trumpets in a dazed sort of way, when all 
at once I heard another noise just behind me. I turned 
round, and, to my horror, saw the waggon opening like a 
tomb, and coming out of it an enormous individual, white 
as snow from head to foot, like the commander's ghost in 
the 'Festin de Pierre,' holding up the top of the waggon 
with one hand, and having a draws sword in the other. 
I looked silently at this spectre, walking a few steps 
backward, and drawing my sword while waiting for it to 
speak first. It was trying, without success, to unfasten the 
great white cloak it wore with the hand which held the 
sword, as the other was engaged in holding up the top of 
the waggon. 

At last, breaking the silence, I asked in rather a trem- 
bling voice : 

' Are you a Frenchman ?' 

* Yes, of course I am French ! What a d d silly 

question ! There you stand like a church candle ! You 
see what a fix I am in, and you don't attempt to help me 
out of this coffin. I seem to have frightened you, my good 
fellow.' 

142 



MEETING WITH PICART 

* Yes, you did frighten me ; but I thought you might be 
another of these beauties ' — pointing to the man at the 
fire. 

I helped him out as I spoke, and he threw off his cloak. 
Imagine my surprise and delight when I recognised one 
of my old friends of the Grenadiers of the Old Guard, 
a comrade called Picart — Picart by name and Picard by 
nation — whom I had not seen since the Emperor's review 
at the Kremlin ! He and I had made our first campaign 
together ; we had been at the battles of Jena, Pultusk, 
Eylau, Tilsit, and later, in i8og, at Mora, on the Spanish 
frontier, and other campaigns since then, although not in 
the same regiment. Picart scarcely knew me again, I had 
altered so much and looked so miserable. We gazed at 
each other in amazement — I to see him looking so clean 
and well, and he to find me so thin, and looking, as he 
said, like Robinson Crusoe. At last he said: 

* Tell me, sergeant, my old friend, by what luck or mis- 
fortune do I find you here, alone and at night, with that 
villainous Cossack. Just look at him! See his eyes! 
He has been here since five o'clock yesterday, and then 
he disappeared. I can't think why he has come back. 
And you ? What brought you here in the middle of the 
night ?' 

' Before I tell you, have you a bit of something to eat 
about you ?' 

' Yes, sergeant, a little biscuit.' 

And he opened his knapsack and drew out a piece of 
biscuit the size of his hand, which I devoured at once. I 
had not tasted bread since October 27.* As I ate I said : 

* Picart, have you any brandy ?' 

* No, mon pays !' 

* Except a little bit given me by Grangier at Smolensk, on 
November 12. — Author's Note. 

143 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

* I thought I smelt something Hke it.' 

* You are right,' he said. ' Yesterday, when the waggon 
was pillaged, there was a bottle of brandy ; but they 
quarrelled over it, and it was broken and the brandy 
spilt.' 

I said I should hke to see the place where it happened, 
and when he showed me I gathered up some snow a Vean 
de vie, just as before I had collected horse's blood a la 
glace. 

' That's good,' said Picart. ' I never thought of doing 
that. I think we can manage to get drunk, as there were 
several bottles in the waggon.' 

The biscuit and brandied snow had done me a great 
deal of good, so I related to Picart all that had happened 
to me since the evening before. He could scarcely believe 
me ; but when I told him of the misery the entire army 
was suffering, including his regiment and all the Imperial 
Guard, he was distressed beyond words. The readers of 
this diary will be surprised that Picart knew nothing of 
what had been going on. I will tell them the reason 
of this. 



144 



CHAPTER VIII. 

I TRAVEL WITH PICART — THE COSSACKS PICART IS WOUNDED — 

A CONVOY OF FRENCH PRISONERS A HALT IN A FOREST 

POLISH HOSPITALITY AN ATTACK OF INSANITY — WE REJOIN 

THE ARMY — THE EMPEROR AND THE SACRED BATTALION — 
THE CROSSING OF THE BEREZINA. 

Since the Battle of Malo-Jaroslawetz, Picart had been 
separated from his regiment, as he had been sent in 
the escort of a convoy composed of part of the Imperial 
equipage. This detachment was always two or three 
days' march in advance of the army, and in consequence 
had not suffered anything like the same privations as the 
rest. As there were only 400 of them, they had often 
been able to find provisions, and, besides, had means of 
transport. At Smolensk they had found enough flour and 
biscuits to last for several days. At Krasnoe they had the 
good luck to arrive and get away twenty-four hours before 
the Russians got there. At Orcha again they had found 
flour. In any village they came to there were always 
houses enough available for shelter, if only post-houses at 
some distance from each other. We, on the other hand, 
had to march 150,000 strong to begin with, afterwards 
only half that number, and had had only forests and 
marshes to sleep in, only horseflesh to eat — and very little 
of it — water to drink, and sometimes not even that. My 

145 L 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

old comrade's sufferings only began when he joined 
me. 

Picart told me that the man lying by our fire had been 
wounded by some Polish Lancers in an attack during the 
afternoon. This is the account he gave of it : 

' More than 600 Cossacks and other cavalry attacked 
our convoy. We were sheltered, however, by our carts, 
formed into a square, and letting the enemy come quite 
close to us, at our first discharge we stretched eleven of 
them on the snow ; a greater number still were wounded 
and carried off by their horses. They fled, but met some 
Polish Lancers of General Dombrouski's corps,* who put 
them to utter rout. The man by the fire was brought 
back a prisoner, and several others with him, but I don't 
know why they left him. After the affair I told you of, 
there was a good deal of confusion. Those in charge of 
the waggons tried to get through the defile near the forest 
before each other, so that the shelter of the trees might 
guard them against a surprise. Some of them, hoping to 
find a crossing higher up, were deceived by the aspect of 
the snow, and fell into a deep crevasse — the first waggon 
turned completely over with the two cognias.f 

' The other waggons avoided the same fate by turning 
to the left, but I do not know if they arrived safely or not. 

They left me here to take care of this d d waggon, 

and two Chasseurs with me, saying that they would send 
some men and horses to fetch it or its contents away. An 
hour afterwards, however, as it was getting dark, nine 
men, stragglers from different regiments, passed by. 

* The corps commanded by General Dombrouski, a Pole, had not 
been as far as Moscow. It was marching just now to Borisow to cut 
off the Russians from the bridge over the Bdrdzina. — Author's Note. 

t Cognia in Polish, and in Russian also, means horse. — Author's 
Note. 

146 



I TRAVEL WITH PICART 

Seeing the overturned waggon, and only three men to 
guard it, they broke into it, on the pretext of finding food, 
in spite of everything we said to the contrary. 

' Seeing that all our efforts were unavailing, we followed 
their example, taking and putting aside anything we could 
find. But it was now too late, as all the best things had 
been taken, and the horses were cut up into twenty pieces. 
I managed to secure this white cloak for myself. I cannot 
understand how the Chasseurs with me contrived to get 
away without my seeing them.' 

I told Picart that the men who had pillaged the waggon 
belonged to the Grand Army, and if he had only asked them 
for news they could have told him as much, or more, 
than I. 

* After all, Picart, it was just as well that they took what 
they did, for the Russians will be here very soon.' 

* You are right,' said Picart ; * and we had better put 
our arms in order.' 

' First of all, I must find my musket,' I said. * I have 
never lost it before. I have carried it for six years, and I 
am so familiar with it that at any hour of the night, in 
the middle of a pile of others, I know it by touching it — 
even by the noise it makes in falling.' 

As no fresh snow had fallen, I fortunately was able to 
find it. Picart helped me by lighting my way with a piece 
of resinous wood. 

After having looked to our boots — an important con- 
sideration — we cooked a piece of horseflesh, of which 
Picart had a good store. Aft-er eating, and drinking a 
little brandied snow, we put some meat into our knapsacks, 
and, standing to warm ourselves before the fire, we con- 
sidered the next step to be taken. 

' Well,' said the good fellow, ' which way now for us?' 

' That infernal music's in my ears still,' I said. 

147 L— 2 



r^EMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

' Perhaps we are making a mistake. Very likely it's the 
first bugle, or our Horse-Grenadiers' reveille — you know 

the air : 

' Fillettes, aupres des amoureux 
Tenez bien votre serieux,' etc. 

I interrupted Picart by telling him that there had been 
no first bugle or reveille for the last fortnight ; that we had 
no more cavalry ; that with the few that still remained a 
squadron called the Doomed Squadron had been formed, 
commanded by the oldest Marshal in France, that the 
Generals were Captains, and the Colonels and other officers 
served as private soldiers ; that just the same thing had 
happened to a battalion now called the Doomed Battalion ; 
that, in short, of 40,000 men in the cavalry, only 1,000 
remained. 

Without leaving him time to reply, I told him that what 
we had heard was the signal of departure for the Russian 
cavalry, and it was that which brought him out of the 
waggon. 

' Oh, mon pays, it wasn't only that which made me clear 
out : I had been watching you some time trying to set me 
on fire !' 

Picart had hardly finished speaking, when he seized me 
by the arm suddenly, saying, 'Silence! Lie down!' I 
threw myself on the ground at once. He followed my 
example, and covered the fire with a cuirass. I looked 
up, and saw the Russian cavalry defile above us in the 
utmost silence. This lasted for quite a quarter of an 
hour. 

As soon as they had gone, Picart said, * Follow me,' 
and, linking arms, we started walking in the direction they 
had come from. 

After going for some time, Picart stopped, saying quite 
softly : 

148 



I TRAVEL WITH PICART 

* Now we can breathe ; we are safe, at least, for a time. 
We've been lucky, for if that wounded bear ' (the Cossack) 
* had seen his people, he would have bellowed like a bull 
to attract them, and God knows what would have hap- 
pened then ! But that reminds me : I have forgotten 
something most important — a saucepan at the back of the 
waggon — more useful for us than anything else. We 
must go back for it.' As he saw I was unwilling, he said: 
' Come quick, or we may die of hunger !' 

We got back to our bivouac. We found the fire almost 
extinct, and the poor devil of a Cossack rolling about in 
the snow in the most terrible sufferings, with his head 
almost in the fire. We could do nothing to relieve him, 
but we laid him on some sheepskin schabraques, so that he 
might die more comfortably. 

' He will not die just yet,' said Picart. ' Look at his 
eyes : they shine like two candles.' 

We had placed him sitting up, holding him by his arms, 
but as soon as we let him go he fell down again, his face 
in the fire. We dragged him out only just in time to 
prevent his being burnt. We left him then to look for 
our saucepan, which we found so battered that it was past 
using. Picart, however, strapped it all the same on to my 
back. 

We then tried to get up the steep bank, and reach the 
wood before daylight, where there would be shelter both 
from the cold and the enemy. After twice rolling down 
from the top to the bottom, we managed to make a footing 
in the snow. We reached the top at the exact place from 
which I had fallen the evening before, and where the 
Russian cavalry had filed past. We stopped for an instant 
to take breath and make out our bearings. 

* Straight on,' said Picart. * Follow me.' 

He started off as he spoke, and I followed ; but hardly 

149 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

had he gone twenty yards when he disappeared in a hole 
six feet deep. He stood up without speaking, and I 
helped him out with his musket ; but as soon as he was 
safe he began swearing against the God of Russia and the 
Emperor Napoleon, whom he called ' Conscript.' 

* He is a regular fool of a conscript to have waited so 
long in Moscow. A fortnight was long enough to eat and 
drink everything we found there ; but to stay there thirty- 
four days just waiting for winter to come on ! I call that 
folly. If he were here, I could tell him to his face that 
isn't the way to lead men. Good God ! the dances he has 
led me the last sixteen years. We suffered enough in Egypt 
— in the Syrian deserts ; but that's nothing compared with 
these deserts of snow !' and he began blowing on his hands. 

* Come, my poor fellow,' I said, ' this is not the time to 
stand and talk — we must do something ; let us see if we 
can't find a better way to the left.' 

Picart had drawn out the ramrod of his musket, and 
walked about sounding the snow in front of him. It was 
just as deep all round. In the end we got across near 
where he had fallen in. Once on the other side, we went 
on, still sounding as we went. Halfway to the wood we 
came upon another deep ditch, like that one in which we 
had spent the night. We crossed it, and with very great 
difficulty reached the other side. We were so tired that 
we were forced to stop and take breath. 

To the right we saw some black clouds coming on us 
with frightful rapidity. The clouds coming with a north 
wind foretold a terrible storm, and a cruel day in store for 
us. The wind roared through the pines and birch-trees, 
and drove us just the way we did not want to go. Some- 
times we fell into holes concealed by the snow. At last, 
after an hour's walking, we arrived at our haven just as 
the snow began to fall in great flakes. 

150 



I TRAVEL WITH PICART 

The storm burst with such force that trees broken or 
torn up by the roots fell on all sides, and we were com- 
pelled to leave the forest. We kept on the edge of the 
wood, with the wind to our left, but were stopped by a 
great lake which we could have easily crossed, as it was 
frozen hard, if it had been in the right direction. The 
quantity of snow falling prevented our seeing, and we 
were forced finally to stop altogether, sheltering behind 
two large birch-trees, until the weather had mended a 
little. 

For a long time we stood there, stamping our feet to 
keep out the frost, when I noticed that the wind had 
abated a little. I mentioned this to Picart, and proposed 
going further on. We had skirted a good way along the 
lake, when suddenly Picart stopped and looked steadily 
before him. He then seized my arm and whispered : 

' Hold your tongue !' Then, dragging me behind a bush, 
he said in a low voice, ' Don't you see ?' 

' I don't see anything. What is it ?' 

' Smoke. A bivouac' 

I looked, and saw it too. An idea came to me, and I 
said : 

' Perhaps the fire belongs to the bivouac of the cavalry 
we saw this morning.' 

* I think very likely it does,' he said ; ' we must behave 
as if we were sure of it. We made a great mistake this 
morning in not loading our muskets while we were near 
the fire. Now our hands are numbed, and the barrels full 
of snow, we can't do it.' 

The snow fell very lightly now, and the sky was clearer. 
All at once I caught sight of a horse gnawing the bark of 
a birch on the edge of the lake. I pointed it out to Picart, 
and as the horse was not harnessed, he thought it might 
be a wounded one, abandoned by the Russian cavalry. 

151 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

While we were talking, the horse suddenly threw up his 
head and began to neigh, then quietly came straight up to 
us and snuffed at Picart as if he knew him. We dared 
neither move nor speak. The confounded horse stopped 
there, his head against Picart's fur cap, who dared hardly 
breathe, fearing that his master might come to look for 
him. Seeing, however, that he had a wound in the chest, 
we concluded that he was abandoned, and no doubt the 
bivouac also. We moved forward, and reached a cleared 
semicircle covered with shelters and fires, and seven 
horses killed and partly eaten. We guessed that more 
than 200 men must have passed the night here. 

' It was the Russians,' said Picart, warming his hands 
in the ashes. ' I remember that yellow horse ; he was my 
mark in the attack. I think I got his master a commission 
for the next world.' 

After a thorough look round we revived the fire in front 
of the shelter, which the leader of the party had apparently 
occupied. 

The snow had stopped, and a dead calm had succeeded 
the wind. We now began to make soup, but thought it 
wiser to keep back our own store of meat, as there was 
plenty to be had here. Picart cut some fresh meat with 
my little axe, enough for soup, and also some to take away 
with us. We tried to break through the ice for water, but 
had not enough strength or patience for the job. Now 
we were quite warm, and the prospect of having some 
good soup filled me with joy. When one is in real trouble, 
how little it takes to make one happy ! Our saucepan 
was of no use in its dilapidated condition, but Picart, who 
was full of resource, and whom nothing put out, set to 
work to put it right. He cut down a pine-tree to about a 
foot and a half from the ground, and using the stump as 
an anvil, and another thick piece as a hammer (wrapped 

152 



I TRAVEL WITH PICART 

in rag to dull the sound), he began his tinker's work, sing- 
ing and keeping time with his blows. These were the 
words he sang, just as he used to sing them during the 
night-marches to his company : 

' C'est ma mie I'aveugle, 
C'est ma mie I'aveugle^ 
C'est ma fantaisie ; 
J'en suis amoureux.' 

As I listened to his powerful voice ringing out, I was 
obliged to say, ' Mon vieiix camarade, you quite forget : 
this is hardly the time for singing.' 

Picart looked at me, smiling, and without answering he 

started again : 

' Elle a le nez morveux 
Et les yeux chassieux. 
C'est ma mie aveugle, 
C'est ma fantaisie ; 
J'en suis amoureux !' 

He stopped, seeing that I was afraid of his singing, and 
showed me the saucepan, now fit to use. 

* Do you remember,' he said, ' the day of the Battle of 
Eylau, when we were on the right of the church ?' 

' Yes, of course I do,' I said ; ' we had weather just like 
to-day. I have reason to remember it, for a brutal Russian 
bullet carried away my saucepan. Have you forgotten it, 
Picart ?' 

' By Heaven, no !' he said ; * that's why I remind you of 
it, and ask you if a little patience and industry would not 
have mended your pan ?' 

' Certainly not, no more than Gregoire's and Lemoine's 
heads which it carried off, too.' 

* How the devil do you remember their names ?' 

* I cannot forget them ; Gregoire was a Velite like me, 
and a good friend, too. That day I had some biscuits 
and haricots in the saucepan.' 

^53 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

* Yes,' said Picart, ' which were splashed all over us. 
Great God ! what a day that was !' 

While we talked the snow melted in the pan. We put 
as much flesh in as it would hold, so that we might have 
some cooked meat to take away with us. 

My curiosity prompted me to look into the canvas 
bag which I had picked up the evening before. I found 
in it only three cotton handkerchiefs, two razors, and 
several letters in French, dated from Stuttgart, written to 
Sir Jacques (sic), a Baden officer in a Dragoon regiment. 
The letters were full of affection from a sister to a brother. 
I kept them for some time, but they were lost when I was 
taken prisoner. 

Picart sat down before the fire at the entrance to our 
shelter, his back turned to the north, and opened his 
knapsack. He drew out a handkerchief, with some salt 
tied up in one corner, and a little oatmeal in another. It 
was long enough since I had seen so much, and my mouth 
watered merely to think of soup salted with real salt, when 
for the last month all the seasoning I had taken was 
powder. 

I was terribly tired, and the warmth of the fire made 
me sleepy. I told Picart that I should drop off. 

'All right,' he said, 'drop off. Get into the shelter, and 
I'll look after the soup, and I can clean and load our arms. 
How many cartridges have you ?' 

'Three packets of fifteen.' 

* Very good. I have four, so that makes a hundred and 
five ; more than enough to do for twenty-five Cossacks, if 
they should come this way. Get along ; go to sleep.' 

I did not need telling twice, and, wrapping myself in 
my bearskin cloak, with my feet to the fire, I fell asleep. 
I was sleeping soundly, when Picart awoke me, saying : 

' Mon pays, you have been sleeping like an angel for two 

154 



THE COSSACKS 

hours. I have had supper; now it's your turn to eat and 
mine to rest, for I want it badly. Here are our muskets 
cleaned and loaded. Mind you keep good watch, and 
when I am rested a bit we will get on.' 

He wrapped himself in his white cloak and lay down, 
while I took the saucepan between m}' knees and began 
with a tremendous appetite on the soup. I do not think 
I ever enjoyed, or ever shall enjoy, anything so much. 

After my supper, I got up to take my turn at the watch ; 
but I had not been there for more than five minutes, when 
I heard the wounded horse neigh loudly several times, and 
then gallop off on to the middle of the lake. Then he 
stopped and neighed again. Several other horses answered 
him, and he started off in the direction of the sound. I 
hid myself behind a clump of firs, and saw the horse join 
a detachment of cavalry which was crossing the lake. 
There were about twenty-three of them. I called Picart, 
already sleeping so soundly that I could not make him 
hear, and I was obliged to pull his legs. At last he 
opened his eyes. 

' Well, what is it ?' 

* Quick, Picart ! Get up ! Russian cavalry on the lake. 
We must get back to the wood.' 

' You ought to have let me sleep. I deserved it.' 

* I am sorry, mon vieux, but you told me to warn you, 
and no doubt a lot more may be coming.' 

' Oh yes,' he said, ' that's true. What a devihsh trade 
this is ! Where are they ?' 

* Rather to the right, and out of range.' 

Five others passed directly afterwards, half a gun-shot 
off. We saw the first few stop, and, dismounting, make a 
circle near a place on the lake, where they had probably 
broken the ice before to water their horses, for we saw 
them strike the new ice with the butts of their lances. 

155 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

We decided to pack and be off as soon as possible ; to 
strike the road again, and, if possible, rejoin the army. 
It was about eleven o'clock ; thus we had until dark — i.e., 
about four o'clock. The army, I knew, could not be far off, as 
the Russians were waiting for us at the crossing of the Bere- 
zina, where all our scattered troops would have to collect. 

We hurried our preparations as much as possible. 
Picart filled his knapsack with meat, and I did the same 
with the canvas bag. He decided to regain the road by 
the way we had come, following the outskirts of the 
forest. If we were surprised by the Russians, we should 
have the wood for shelter ; and if we were not molested, 
we should be on a road we could not easily lose. 

We started then — he with more than fifteen pounds of 
fresh meat, and I carrying the saucepan filled with the 
meat already cooked. Picart told me that he always liked 
carrying the food on a march in preference to other things, 
as after a few days it diminished greatly in quantity ; he 
quoted yEsop as a proof of what he said. As he was 
talking, we heard musket-shots from the opposite side of 
the lake. ' Back ! Into the wood !' said Picart ; but the 
noise soon ceased, and we set out again. 

The storm, so long quiet, now threatened to break out 
afresh. Great clouds covered the forest, making it so 
dark that we dared not enter it for shelter. As we stopped 
to consider our next move, we heard more firing, this 
time much nearer. We now saw two troops of Cossacks 
trying to surround seven of our infantrymen, who were 
coming down a hill, apparently from a little hamlet on 
the opposite side of the lake. We could see them fire on 
the enemy, and then retreat to the side of the lake, 
evidently trying to gain the forest, where they could set 
the Cossacks at defiance. 

There were more than thirty of the Cossacks ; half of 

156 



THE COSSACKS 

them came down to the edge of the lake opposite to us, 
to cut off our men's retreat. Our fire-arms were ready 
loaded, and I had thirty cartridges ready to receive them 
if they came over to our side, and perhaps to help our men 
to get off. Picart, who kept his eyes fixed on them, said : 

' Mo7i pays, you must load, and I will engage to bring 
them down like so many ducks. As a beginning, we'll 
both fire together.' 

Our men, however, continued to retreat. Picart re- 
cognised them as the same men who had pillaged the 
waggon the day before ; but now there were only seven, 
instead of nine. The cavalry were now only about forty 
yards off, so Picart, slapping me on the shoulder, said : 
' x\ttention to the word of command ! Fire !' The men 
stopped astonished, and one of them fell from his horse. 
When the Cossacks saw this they scattered, and only two 
remained with the wounded man, who was now sitting on 
the ice, supporting himself by one hand. Picart, anxious 
to lose no time, fired a second time, and wounded a horse. 
Then they all fled, leaving their wounded comrade, and 
sheltering themselves behind their horses, which they led 
by the bridles. We next heard savage cries on our left 
hand, and saw our unfortunate comrades surrounded by 
Cossacks on all sides. On our right we could see the two 
men return for the w^ounded one, and as he was unable to 
walk, they dragged him by the legs over the ice. 

We specially noticed a Cossack on the look-out for us, 
gazing at the place where he had first seen us. Picart 
could contain himself no longer ; he fired, and the Cossack 
was struck on the head, for we saw him reel in his saddle, 
drop his head forward, and, with his arms stretched out, 
fall from his horse. He was dead.* 

* Picart was one of the best shots in the Guard. In camp at target 
practice he always carried off the prizes. — Author's Note. 

157 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

At the noise of the shot the Cossacks who surrounded 
our comrades turned round astonished. Our infantry 
fired at them, and four Cossacks fell at once. Then we 
heard shouts of rage, and a stubborn fight followed. We 
were just about to help in a vigorous manner, when the 
storm, which had threatened for so long, broke. The snow, 
which had been falling all the time, grew so thick as com- 
pletely to blind us. We found ourselves in a thick cloud, 
obliged to cling to each other to avoid being blown down 
by the wind. All at once the cloud disappeared, and six 
yards off we saw the enemy, who yelled out on seeing us. 
We could not fire, our hands were so frozen by the cold ; 
but we faced them with the bayonet, and regained the 
wood, while they galloped off. 

On entering the wood, we saw the three infantrymen 
pursued by five Cossacks from the other side of the lake. 
We fired on them, but without success, and were beginning 
again, when all at once we saw them sink in the lake and 
disappear, two Cossacks with them. The unfortunate 
men had passed over the place which the Russians had 
broken in for their horses, and the new ice was not strong 
enough to bear any weight. A third Cossack, seeing the 
others disappear, tried to stop his horse, and made him 
rear upright. The horse's hind-legs slipped, and he fell 
over with his rider, and they, too, disappeared after the 
others. 

We were horror-struck, and our pursuers remained 
motionless on the ice, not attempting to help their 
comrades. We could hear piercing cries from the hole 
in the ice, and several times saw horses' heads appear ; 
then the water bubbled up and spread over the ice. 

Ten cavalrymen with their commander came up, and, 
approaching the fatal spot, plunged their lances in ; ap- 
parently finding no bottom to the lake, they looked over 

158 



THE COSSACKS 

to our side, and then galloped off again. We lost sight 
of them, and all was quiet. 

We were now left alone in this deserted spot, leaning 
on our firearms, and looking at the bodies of the wretched 
men. After a silence of some minutes, Picart said : 

' I have a longing for a pipe. I have a good mind to 
look for some tobacco among these men ; I shall be ver}' 
unlucky if I don't find any.' 

I said this was an imprudent thing to do, as we did not 
know where the first of the cavalry had gone to ; and as I 
spoke we saw a number of horsemen and peasants carrying 
long poles towards the ice where the unfortunate men had 
been engulfed. A cart with two horses followed them. 

* Good-bye to my tobacco,' said Picart. 

We now thought it advisable to go to the farthest side 
of the wood; there we found a shelter, probably belonging 
to a last night's bivouac, where we could hide ourselves 
and watch the Cossacks. They partly stripped the bodies 
of our men, and the peasants came afterwards and stripped 
them naked. I had the greatest difficulty while this was 
going on to keep Picart from shooting at them. 

The rest of them, with the peasants, went on towards 
the hole in the ice, and began to make preparations for 
dragging out the submerged men. When we saw them 
at work, there was nothing more for us to wait for. It 
was not quite so cold, and might be about mid-day. We 
noticed two Cossacks patrolling the outskirts of the wood, 
following our footprints in the snow. At sight of them, 
Picart flew into a rage, and said : 

* If they have seen us, there is nothing more for us to 
do ; they will follow us wherever we go by our footmarks. 
Let us hurry on, and get into the wood as soon as we can, 
and if they're not more than two, we can account for 
them.' He stopped directly afterwards. 'Confound them ! 

159 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

I had counted on them for tobacco. The cowards ! They 
were too frightened to follow us,' 

We kept as much as possible to the forest ; but the 
fallen trees here and there barred our way, and we had to 
come out occasionally. Once we looked back, and saw 
the two men, one behind the other, about thirty yards off. 
One of them no doubt saw us, as he spurred on his horse, 
then waited for his companion to come up. We retired 
into the wood, where we could see them without being 
seen, and we walked as quickly as possible — sometimes in 
the wood, sometimes outside — in order to draw the two 
men farther and farther from their companions. 

After half an hour's walking, we were stopped by a wall 
of snow ending in a ravine, so we were forced to take a 
few steps back towards the forest to hide ourselves. The 
Cossacks were now close to us, but Picart, who knew the 
art of war, whispered : ' I want them at the other side of 
the ditch ; they will be further off from the others.' 

When the Cossacks saw that they could not get through, 
they went down the ravine so as to come up on the other 
side of the snow wall. We had in the meantime found 
a passage for ourselves. We took advantage of the moment 
when they were in the ditch for getting out of the forest ; 
but just as we thought we had got rid of them, and I 
waited for a breathing-space, for my legs were beginning 
to fail under me, Picart turned his head, and saw our two 
friends behind, trying to take us by surprise, when we 
thought they were in front. We re-entered the forest 
quickly, and, making several detours, we returned and saw 
them walking very softly. Again we took to the forest, 
running in and out to deceive them, and finally returning 
to hide behind a group of little pine-trees covered with 
snow. 

When the first man was about "forty yards off, Picart 

1 60 



PICART IS WOUNDED 

said : * The honour of the first shot is yours, sergeant, 
but wait till he comes nearer.' 

As he spoke, the Cossack signed to his comrade to 
advance. He turned his horse to the right, facing the 
bush we were behind. When he was four yards off I 
fired, and wounded him in the breast. He cried out, and 
would have fled, but Picart rushed forward, seized the 
bridle of his horse, and struck him with the point of his 
bayonet, saying, ' Look out, wow pays ; take care of the 
other.' As he spoke, the other came up and discharged 
his pistol at the head of Picart, who fell under the horse 
he was holding. I ran at the man who had fired, but, 
seeing me, he threw away his pistol, turned, and galloped 
off to the plain, a hundred yards from us. I could not 
fire at him, as my musket was not reloaded, and with my 
benumbed hands it was impossible to do it. 

Picart was now on his feet, but the Cossack I had 
wounded fell from his horse as if dead. Picart lost no time. 
He gave me the horse to hold. Walking twenty paces 
off, he aimed at the other man, sending a ball whistling 
by his ear, which he avoided by laying himself almost 
flat on his horse, and then made off at a gallop. Picart 
reloaded his musket, and then said to me, ' The victory 
is ours, but we must be quick ; let us use the conqueror's 
rights, and see if this man has anything for us. We can 
go off with the horse.' 

I asked Picart if he was not wounded, but he said it 
was nothing ; we would talk of that later. He took two 
pistols, one of them loaded, from the dead man, and said, 
* I believe he is shamming ; I saw him open his eyes.' 

In the meantime I tied the horse to a tree, and took 
the man's sword and a pretty little case set in silver, 
which I recognised as belonging to a surgeon in our army. 
This I hung round my neck, but I threw the sword into 

i6i M 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

the brushwood. The Cossack wore two French uniforms 
under his cloak, a Cuirassier's, and a red Lancer's of the 
Guard, with an officer's decoration of the Legion d'Honneur, 
which Picart promptly secured. He wore besides several 
very fine waistcoats folded in four, making a thick breast- 
plate, which no ball could have pierced. In his pockets 
we found more than 300 francs in five-franc pieces, two 
silver watches, and five crosses of honour, all taken from 
the dead and dying, or from carts left behind. If we had 
stayed longer we should probably have found more. 

Picart picked up his lance and unloaded pistol. He 
hid them in a bush, and we set off. Picart walked in 
front, leading the horse, and as I followed it occurred to 
me to feel inside a portmanteau fastened on the horse, 
which I could see had belonged to an officer of Cuirassiers 
of our own army. When I got my hand inside I felt 
something very much like a bottle. When I told Picart, 
he cried, ' Halt !' The portmanteau was opened in a 
couple of minutes, and I drew out a bottle filled with 
something the colour of gin. Picart swallowed some of 
it without troubling to smell it, and then passed it to me. 
* Your turn, sergeant.' An exquisite sensation im- 
possible to describe came over me after I had drunk some. 
We agreed that this was the most precious of all our 
finds. We must be very careful of it ; and as I had in my 
pouch a little china cup I had brought from Moscow, we 
decided that it should be the measure each time we drank.* 

We plunged into the forest, and after a quarter of an 
hour's painful progress, on account of the quantity of 
fallen trees, we reached a road five or six feet wide, going 

* I still have the little cup ; it is at home, under a glass case, with a 
little silver cross found in the crypt of the Church of St. Michael, and 
under the Emperors' tomhs.— Author's Note. 

162 



ON HORSEBACK 

precisely in the direction we must take to rejoin the high- 
road where the army must have passed. 

FeeHng now easier in my mind, I raised my head and 
looked at Picart. His face was all covered with blood. 
Blood had formed in icicles on his moustache and beard. 
I told him that he was wounded on his head. He said 
'yes,' he had discovered it when his cap had caught on 
a branch, and blood had flowed down his face ; it was 
nothing of any consequence. ' And besides,' he con- 
tinued, * this is not the time to bother about it ; it will 
do this evening.' 

I proposed that, to get on faster, we should both mount 
the horse. ' Let us try,' he said. We therefore took off 
the wooden saddle he had on his back, leaving only a 
cloth underneath, and we both got astride, Picart in front, 
and I behind. We drank some of our spirit and started, 
holding our muskets across like balancing-poles. We 
trotted on, sometimes we galloped ; often our way was 
barred by fallen trees, and the idea occurred to Picart to 
cut down a few more which looked on the point of falling, 
and thus to form a barrier against the cavalry if they came 
after us. He dismounted, and with my axe he felled 
some small pine-trees across the road, which would 
eifectually provide twenty-five men with work for an hour. 
After he had mounted again, we trotted on for a quarter 
of an hour, when he stopped and said : 

' Coqinn de Dieu ! this tartar has a hard trot !' 

I said he was taking his revenge on us for having killed 
his master. 

' Ah, sergeant,' he said, * the drop of drink has made 
you merry, I see.' 

Picart arranged the flaps of his white cloak carefully on 
the horse's back to make his seat easier, and we went on 
for a quarter of an hour at a walking pace. Some time 

163 M— 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

the horse was half buried in the snow. We now saw a 
road crossing ours, which we concluded must be the high- 
road, but we had to be careful before entering it. We 
jumped down, and leading the horse, we retired into the 
forest, in order to examine the road without being seen. 
We soon recognised it as being the road leading to the 
Berezina, by the vast number of corpses half covered by 
snow, and footmarks coming towards us ; and the traces 
of blood on the snow looked as if a convoy of French 
prisoners, escorted by Russians, had passed not long 
since. 

There was therefore no doubt that we were btnind the 
Russian van-guard, and that very soon others would come 
after us. What were we to do ? To follow the high- 
road was the only course open to us. Picart's opinion 
was this : 

* An idea has occurred to me. You shall be the rear- 
guard, and I the van-guard. I will guide the horse for- 
ward if I see nothing coming ; you, my friend, with your 
head turned towards his tail, can look out behind.' 

It was not easy to put Picart's idea into practice. We 
had to sit back to back, like a double eagle, as he said, 
with two eyes in front and two behind. We each took a 
small glass of gin, reserving the rest for a case of necessity, 
and we put the horse to a walk, setting off again in this 
silent and lonely forest. 

The north wind was bitterly cold, and the rear-guard 
suffered severely from it, hardly able as he was to keep his 
position ; but, fortunately, the atmosphere was clear, and 
one could see objects quite a long way off; the road we 
followed was also a straight one, so that we had no fear of 
being surprised at a sudden bend. We progressed in this 
way for half an hour, when we met in the wood bordering 
the road seven peasants, who appeared to be waiting for 

164 



POLISH PEASANTS 

us. They each wore a sheepskin coat, and their boots 
were made of the bark of trees. They came up to us, 
wished us good-day in Pohsh, and seemed pleased to find 
that we were French. They made us understand that 
they had to go to Minsk to join the Russian army, as they 
belonged to the militia ; they had been forced to march 
against us by blows from the knout, and Cossacks were 
stationed in all the villages to drive them out. 

We went on our way, and when they were out of sight 
I asked Picart if he had understood what the peasants 
said. Minsk was one of our great depots in Lithuania, 
containing storehouses of food, and where a large part of 
the army was to meet. He said he had understood per- 
fectly, and if it was true. Papa Beau-pere* had played us a 
nasty trick. As I did not understand, he explained that 
the Austrians must have betrayed us.t He was going on 
at some length, when he suddenly pulled the horse up, 
saying, ' Look out, there ! Isn't that a column of troops ?' 
I saw something black, which disappeared again ; but 
directly afterwards the head of a column appeared as if 
coming from a deep hollow. 

It was easy to see they were Russians. We had just 
time to turn to the right and enter the forest, but we had 
hardly gone four paces, when the horse sank breast-deep 
into the snow and threw me off. I dragged Picart 
with me into six feet of snow, and we had the greatest 
trouble in getting out again. The brute of a horse got off, 
but he cleared a passage for us through the woods, and 
we took advantage of it at once. After twenty yards we 
could go no further owing to the thickness of the trees, 

* The Emperor of Austria. 

t Picart knew what he was about in speaking of Austrian treason, 
as I learnt since that an aUiance had been made against us. — Aidho/s 
Note. 

i6s 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

so we were obliged to return — there was no choice. We 
found our horse munching the bark off a tree, to which 
we tied him. We went some distance off behind a thick 
bush, and got ready to defend ourselves. While we waited 
Picart asked whether our bottle was either lost or broken. 
Luckily it was all right, so we each had a cup, which we 
wanted badly. While I undid the bottle, Picart looked to the 
priming of our guns, and took the snow out of the hammers. 

After waiting for about five minutes, the head of the 
column appeared, preceded by ten or twelve armed 
Tartars and Kalmoucks, some with lances, others with 
bows and arrows, and peasants to right and left of the 
road, armed with anything they could lay their hands on. 
In the centre of the group were more than 200 prisoners 
of our army, hardly able to drag themselves along. Many 
of them were wounded ; some had their arms in slings, 
others had frozen feet, and leant on thick staves for 
support. Several had fallen, and in spite of the blows 
from the peasants and from the lances of the Tartars, they 
did not move. I cannot describe the pain we suffered at 
seeing our comrades so ill-treated. Picart said nothing, 
but I feared every instant that he would rush out from 
his cover at the offenders. Just then an officer galloped 
up, and, addressing the prisoners in French, he said : 

' Why don't you walk faster ?' 

* We cannot,' said a soldier lying in the snow, * and, for 
my part, I would rather die here than further on.' 

The officer said that he must have patience, that carts 
were coming, and that the most seriously ill would be put 
into them. 

* You will be better off than you were with Napoleon, 
for at the present moment he is a prisoner with all his 
Guard and the rest of his army, and the bridges over the 
Berezina are cut.' 

166 



A CONVOY OF FRENCH PRISONERS 

'Napoleon a prisoner with his Guard!' replied an old 
soldier. ' May God forgive you, sir I You do not know 
them. They would only be taken dead. They swore it ! 
They cannot be prisoners !' 

* Come,' said the officer, * here are the waggons.' 

We now saw two of our waggons and a travelling forge 
filled with sick and wounded men. Five men were thrown 
out, whom the peasants at once stripped absolutely naked. 
These were replaced by five others, three of whom were 
unable to move by themselves. We heard the officer 
order the peasants to return the clothes they had taken 
to the prisoners most in need of them. As they did not 
hurry themselves to obey his orders, he gave each of them 
several smart blows with a whip. We then heard him say 
to some soldiers who were thanking him : 

* I am French myself. I have been in Russia for twenty 
years. My father died there, but my mother is still alive. 
I hope now that we shall get back to France and our 
property there. I know quite well you have not been 
conquered by force of arms, but by this unendurable 
Russian climate.' 

'And the want of food, besides,' replied a wounded 
man. ' If it were not for that, we should be at St. 
Petersburg.' 

* Perhaps so,' said the officer. 
The convoy moved slowly on. 

When it was out of sight we went for our horse, and 
found him with his head in the snow searching for grass. 
By chance we came upon the remains of a fire. We relit 
it and warmed our frozen limbs. We jumped up every 
moment, and looked to right and left, when all at once 
we heard a groan, and saw a man coming towards us 
almost naked. He had on a coat half burnt, a dilapidated 
forage-cap on his head. His feet were wrapped in rags, 

167 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

an 1 string was tied round them, and round a ragged paii* 
of gray trousers. His nose was almost frozen off, his ears 
covered with wounds. Only his thumb remained on the 
right hand ; all the fingers had dropped off. This was 
one of the poor wretches abandoned by the Russians. 
We could not understand a word he said. When he saw 
our fire he almost threw himself upon it ; he seemed as if 
he would devour it, kneeling down in front of the flame 
without a word. We got him with difficulty to swallow 
a little gin. More than half of what we gave him was 
wasted, for his teeth chattered so he could hardly unclose 
them. 

His groans ceased, his teeth had almost stopped chatter- 
ing, when he suddenly turned pale, and seemed to collapse 
without a word or sigh. Picart tried to raise him up, but 
he only lifted a corpse. This scene took place in less than 
ten minutes. 

Everything my old comrade saw and heard seemed to 
impress him very much. He took his musket, and with- 
out a word to me turned on to the highroad, as if there 
was nothing more to trouble about. I hastened after him, 
leading the horse, and when I caught him up I told him 
to mount. He did so without speaking, and I after him, 
and we pressed forward, hoping to get out of the forest 
before nightfall. 

After an hour's trotting, seeing nothing but dead bodies 
along the road, we came to what we took for the end of 
the forest. We found, however, that it was only a large 
clearing in semicircular form. In the centre was a fair- 
sized house with a few huts round it. This was one of 
the posting-stations, but, unfortunately for us, there were 
horses tied to the trees. Their riders came out of the 
house, and formed in order on the road ; then they trotted 
off. There were eight of them, in white cloaks and very 

1 68 



A HALT IN A FOREST 

high-crested helmets. They were Hke the Cuirassiers we 
fought against at Krasnoe, in November. Luckily, they 
went off in the opposite direction from the road we were 
making for. 

On re-entering the forest, we found it impossible to 
advance twenty yards. No human being could ever have 
set foot there, the trees were so crowded together, the 
brushwood was so thick, and there were so many fallen 
trunks half buried in the snow. We were forced to come 
out, and run the risk of being seen by following the forest 
outside. Our poor horse sank at every step into the 
snow, and night was drawing on before we had gone half 
our distance. To rest for a few minutes, we entered a 
road leading into the forest. We dismounted, and flew 
at once to our precious bottle. This was our fifth attack, 
and we could now see its contents diminishing. 

As there were a good many felled trees about, we 
decided to get as far to the other side of them as possible, 
and we halted against a pile of wood which would prove 
a shelter. After Picart had rid himself of his knapsack, 
and I of my saucepan, he said, * Now for the main thing — 
a fire. Quick ! an old bit of linen,' 

My old shirt was a wonderful thing for catching a blaze. 
I tore off a bit and gave it to Picart ; he made it into a 
wick, and putting it with a bit of powder into the priming- 
pan of his gun, he fired. The linen caught fire, but a 
terrible report was the consequence, repeated again and 
again by echoes, and I feared it would betray us. 

My poor friend Picart was not the same man since he 
had seen the prisoners and heard the officer's account 
of the Emperor's surrender. It had made a great effect 
on him ; he even complained at times of a bad pain in 
his head, which was not at all the result of the Cossack's 
pistol. I cannot explain it. He forgot that he had loaded 

169 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

his musket, and after the report he just sat still without 
speaking, and finally only abused himself for a conscript 
and an old blockhead. Several dogs were set barking. 
Then he said he expected they would come and track us 
out hke wolves. I tried to reassure him by saying that 
we need fear nothing at that late hour. 

We soon had a good fire, as we found some really dry 
wood ; we also found, to our joy, some straw, probably 
hidden by peasants. Providence seemed to smile on us 
again, and Picart said, ' Cheer up, mon pays; we are saved 
just for this night ! God will do the rest to-morrow, and 
if we are lucky enough to find the Emperor, it will be all 
right.' 

Picart, along with all the veterans, who idolized the 
Emperor, thought that once with him everything was 
bound to succeed, and that, in fact, nothing was impossible. 

We made a comfortable litter for our horse with straw, 
and gave him something to eat as well, all the time keeping 
him ready harnessed, and with the portmanteau strapped 
on his back, ready for the first alarm. Picart took a piece 
of cooked meat from the saucepan to thaw it, and said : 

' Do you know, I am thinking a great deal of what the 
Russian officer said.' 

' What do you mean ?' 

* Why, that the Emperor and the Guard were taken 
prisoners. I know, of course, that it's not that — couldn't 
possibly be — but I can't get it out of my wooden head. 
It sticks there, and I shall have no peace till I am with 
the regiment. Just now let's eat and rest a little, and 
afterwards ' — he went on in Picardy patois — ' we'll drink 
a tiote goutte.' 

The temperature was almost mild just then ; we ate 
the horseflesh without much appetite, and Picart talked 
by himself, swearing all the time. 

170 



A HALT IN A FOREST 

' I have forty gold napoleons in my belt, and seven 
Russian gold pieces, not counting the five-franc pieces ; 
I would give the whole with all my heart to be with the 
regiment again. That reminds me,' he said; 'the pieces 
are not in my belt, but are sewn inside my white service 
waistcoat, and, as one never knows what may happen, 
they will belong to you.' 

' Well,' I said, ' now for my last will and testament. I 
have 800 francs in notes and in gold. You may dispose 
of it all, if it is God's will I should die before finding 
the regiment.' 

While warming myself, I put my hand mechanically 
into the little canvas bag I carried, and found something 
hard like a bit of cord and as long as two fingers. On 
examining it I found it was tobacco. What a discovery 
for poor Picart ! When I gave it to him, he let fall a bit 
of meat he was eating, and took a quid of tobacco instead, 
to wait with, he said, while he found his pipe. As it was 
hardly the time to search for it, he contented himself with 
his quid, and I with a little cigar which I made a VEspagnole 
with a piece of paper. 

We had been resting for about two hours, and it was 
not yet seven o'clock. We had therefore eleven or twelve 
hours yet to wait before continuing our march. 

Picart had been walking a few yards off for a moment, 
and I was getting uneasy about him, when I heard a 
rustling in the brushwood in the opposite direction from 
that he had taken. I took my musket and put myself 
ready, when Picart appeared. 

* It is all right, mon pays — quite right,' he said in a 
mysterious voice, signing to me to keep silence. Then 
he told me that two women had just passed along the 
road, one carrying a bundle and the other a pail. They 
had stopped to rest for a few minutes, chattering like 

171 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

magpies. * We will follow them,' he said ; * probably we 
shall come to a village or some hut where we shall get 
shelter and greater safety than here, for listen to those 
confounded dogs barking !' 

' But,' I said, ' we shall be sure to find Russians ! 

He said we would risk that. So we set off again in the 
night, in the midst of a forest, not knowing where we 
were going, and with only a few footmarks in the snow 
to guide us. The footsteps ceased suddenly, and when 
we found them again, they turned off to the right. This 
put us out, as they led us away from the highroad. Very 
often, too, we almost lost sight of them, and Picart had 
frequently to go down on his knees and search for them 
with his hands. 

Picart led the horse by the bridle, and I followed, 
holding his tail. A little further on we found two roads, 
both of them with footmarks, and we stopped, not knowing 
which to take. We thought of making the horse go first, 
and trusting to him to guide us ; but at last God took 
compassion on our misery. We heard a dog bark, and 
a little further on we came to a fairly large building. 
Imagine the roof of one of our barns placed on the ground, 
and you will have an idea of the kind of building now 
before us. We walked round it three times before we 
could discover a door, hidden as it was by a thatched 
roof reaching down to the ground. Picart went under 
the roof, and found a second door, at which he knocked 
gently. No one answered. He knocked again. Still no 
answer. Thinking the house was deserted, he was about 
to push open the door, when a feeble voice was heard ; 
the door opened, and an old woman appeared, holding 
a piece of resinous wood lighted in her hand. At seeing 
Picart, she dropped the wood in terror and fled. My 
companion picked up the wood, still alight, and advanced 

172 



POLISH HOSPITALITY 

some steps. I fastened the horse up near the door, and 
on going in found Picart in a cloud of smoke. In his 
white cloak, with the light in his hand, he looked like a 
penitent. He broke the silence by the best greeting he 
could muster in Polish, and I repeated it after him. An 
old man heard us, and came forward. When he saw 
Picart, he exclaimed : 

* Ah, Frenchmen, that is well !' 

He said it in Polish, and repeated it in German. We 
told them that we were Frenchmen of Napoleon's Guard. 
At that name the Pole bowed, and would have kissed our 
feet. At the word * French,' repeated by the old woman, 
two younger women came out of a little recess, and showed 
the greatest joy. Picart recognised them for the two 
women whose footsteps we had followed. 

After being with these good people for about five minutes 
the heat of the cottage, to which I was so unaccustomed, 
nearly suffocated me. I retreated to the door, where I fell 
down unconscious. 

Picart ran to help me, but the old woman and one of 
her daughters had already lifted me up, and placed me on 
a wooden stool. They relieved me of the saucepan and of 
my bearskin cloak, and made me lie down on a camp-bed 
covered with skins. The women seemed very sorry for 
us, seeing our great misery, and especially for me, as I 
was so young, and had suffered so much more than, my 
comrade. My sufferings had made me so wretched that 
it was pitiful to see me. The old man had busied himself 
in bringing in our horse, and they did all they could for 
us. Picart remembered the gin in my pouch, and made 
me swallow a little, and I began to feel much better. 

The old woman took off my boots for me. I had 
not had them off since Smolensk — that is to say, since 
November loth ; it was now the 23rd. One of the girls 

173 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

filled a great basin with warm water, and, kneeling down, 
took my feet gently one after the other and washed them, 
pointing out that I had a wound in the right foot. It was 
an old chilblain of 1807, at the time of the Battle of Eylau. 
I had not felt it since then, but now it opened again, and 
I suffered cruelly from it.* 

The other girl, who seemed to be the elder, performed 
the same office for Picart. He submitted calmly, but 
seemed embarrassed. I said he had had an inspiration 
from God when he thought of following the girls' foot- 
steps. 

* Yes,' he said ; ' but when I saw them in the forest, I 
never thought we should be received like this. I did not 
tell you,' he continued, ' that my head ached like the 
devil — and I still feel it. I believe that dog of a Cossack's 
ball did more damage than I thought. We'll see.' 

He untied the cord under his chin, which held the sheep- 

* The Battle of Eylau began on February 7th, 1807, at daybreak ; 
we had slept the night before on a plain behind the town, a quarter 
of a league away. This plain was covered with snow and with dead 
bodies, the rear-guard having been engaged there just before our 
arrival. It was scarcely daybreak when the Emperor ordered us to 
move forward. This we had great difficulty in doing, as we walked 
through ploughed fields, and snow up to our knees. He placed the 
Guard near the town — a part of it near the cemetery, and a part on a 
lake fifty yards off. Balls and shells fallmg on the lake cracked the 
ice, and threatened to submerge those who stood on it. All day we 
stood in this position, our feet in the snow, and half crushed by the 
shells and grape-shot. The Russians were four times as strong as we 
were, and they also had the advantage of the wind, which blew dead 
against us, driving the snow, and the smoke from our powder and 
theirs, into our faces. Up till seven o'clock we remained in this 
position. At three in the afternoon our regiment was sent to 
resume the position of the morning, which the Russians wanted to 
take. All night, as during the battle, the snow never ceased to fall. 
That day my right foot was frozen, and was only cured at Finkeistein, 
before the battles of Essling and Fued\a.rA.—Au//wrs Note. 

174 



POLISH HOSPITALITY 

skin ear-coverings in their places ; but hardly had he done 
this when the blood began to flow. 

'Just look!' he said. 'But that's nothing — it's only a 
scratch ; the bullet must have slipped down the side of my 
head.' 

The Pole helped him off with his shoulder-belt. He 
had almost forgotten how to take off that and his fur cap, 
he had slept in them for so long. The girl who had 
washed his feet washed his head too. Ever3^one gathered 
round to serve him. The poor fellow was so much touched 
by their care for him that great tears rolled down his face. 
Scissors were needed to cut his hair, and all at once I 
remembered the surgeon's little case which I had taken 
from the Cossack. We found everything we wanted there 
for dressing the wound — two pairs of scissors, and several 
other surgical instruments, with lint and bandages. After 
cutting the hair off, the old woman sucked the wound, 
which went deeper than we thought. Then we put on 
some lint, a bandage, and a handkerchief. We found the 
ball in the midst of some rags which filled his cap. It 
had gone right through the left wing of the Imperial eagle 
on the front of the cap. To his great joy, he also found 
his pipe, a regular cutty, not three inches long, and he 
began to smoke it at once. 

When our feet were washed, they dried them with 
lambskins, which served afterwards as a carpet ; and on 
my chilblain they put some ointment, assuring me it would 
soon make me all right. They gave me a bit to take away 
in a piece of linen ; this I put in the surgeon's case with 
all the instruments I had used for Picart. We already 
felt much better, and we thanked the Poles for all the care 
they had taken of us. They told us how grieved they 
were not to be able to do more. On a journey one must 
lodge one's enemies and wash their feet. How much 

175 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

more one's friends \ Just then the old woman screamed 
and ran out. Her great dog had run off with Picart'scap. 
They wanted to beat him, but we begged him off. I 
proposed to Picart that we should examine the port- 
manteau still on the horse's back, so we carried it near 
the stove. First we found nine handkerchiefs embroidered 
in silk. 'Quick!' said Picart; 'two each for our prin- 
cesses, and one for the old mother, and the others we will 
keep.' This was done immediately, to everyone's great 
satisfaction. Then we found three pairs of officer's 
epaulettes, three silver watches, seven crosses of honour, 
two silver spoons, two dozen Hussars' gilt buttons, two 
boxes of razors, six bank-notes of lOO roubles each, 
and a pair of linen trousers stained with blood. I hoped 
to find a shirt, but was disappointed. I had greater need 
of that than of anything else, as the warmth had revived 
the vermin which devoured me. 

The girls opened their eyes wide as they looked at our 
presents, unable to believe they were really theirs. The 
gilt buttons gave them greater pleasure than anything else, 
and also some gold rings, which I enjoyed putting on their 
fingers. The girl who had washed my feet noticed, I am 
sure, that I gave her the best. Very likely the Cossacks 
cut off the dead men's fingers to take the rings. 

To the old man we gave a large English watch and two 
razors, besides all the Russian small money, amounting to 
more than thirty francs. We noticed that he fixed his 
eyes continually on a commander's cross with the Em- 
peror's portrait, so we also gave that to him. I cannot 
describe his pleasure. He pressed it several times to his 
lips and his heart, and finally fastened it round his neck 
by a leather band, making us understand that only death 
should part him from it. 

We asked for some bread, and they brought us what 

176 



POLISH HOSPITALITY 

they had not dared give us before, they said, it was so bad. 
We really could not eat it. It was made of a black paste, 
full of grains of barley, rye, and bits of straw, rough 
enough to tear one's throat to pieces. They said this 
bread came from the Russians, that three leagues off the 
French had beaten them that very morning, and had taken 
a large convoy from them. This news had been brought 
to them by the Jews who were flying from all the villages 
on the road to Minsk. They had also sold them this 
bread, which was quite uneatable, and although I had 
not eaten any bread for more than a month, I could not 
manage to get rhy teeth into it. For a long time, too, 
my lips had been so cracked by the frost that they bled 
constantly. 

When the peasants saw that we could not eat the bread, 
they brought us a piece of mutton, a few potatoes, some 
onions, and some pickled cucumber. They gave us, in 
fact, everything they had, saying that they would do their 
best to get us something better. We put the mutton into 
the saucepan to make some soup. The old man told us 
that half a league off there was a village filled with refugee 
Jews, and as they had carried off all their food with them, 
he hoped he could find there something better to eat than 
what they had set before us. We wished to give him some 
money, but he refused it, saying that what we had given 
him and his daughters would be quite sufficient, and that 
one of them had already gone off with her mother and the 
big dog. 

They had made a bed for us on the ground, of straw and 
sheepskins. Picart had already gone to sleep, and I soon 
followed his example. We were awakened by the loud 
barking of the dog. ' Good!' said the Pole, 'my wife 
and daughter have come back.' They brought us some 
milk, a few potatoes, and a little cake of rye-meal, which 

177 N 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

they had procured by heavy payment, but brandy, 
nima.* 

The Httle there was had been taken by the Russians. 
We thanked these kind people who had walked nearly two 
leagues, with the snow up to their knees, in the middle of 
the night, too, in terrible cold, and exposed to the attacks 
of wolves and bears, which abound in Lithuanian forests. 
We made some milk soup and drank it at once. I felt 
much better after I had eaten, and then sat reflecting, my 
head in my hands. Picart asked me what I was thinking of. 

*I am thinking,' I said, 'that if I were not with you, 
and bound by honour and my oath, I should stay here in 
this forest with these good people.' 

* Cheer up,' he said. *I have had a lucky dream. I 
dreamed I was in the barracks at Courbevoie, eating a 
piece of Mere aux bouts'' pudding, and drinking a bottle of 
Suresnes wine.'t 

While Picart was speaking, I noticed that his face was 
very red, and that he frequently put his hand to his fore- 
head. I asked him if his head pained him. He said it 
did, but that was caused very likely by the heat, or by 
having slept too long, but he seemed to me to be in a fever. 
His vision of the barracks at Courbevoie confirmed me in 
this opinion. ' I want to go on with my dream, and try 
to find Mere aux botds again,' he said. ' Good-night 1' 
He was asleep in two minutes. 

* Mma in Polish and Lithuanian means ' no,' or ' there is none.' — 
Author's Note. 

t Mere aux bouts was an old woman who came at six o'clock every 
morning to the barracks at Courbevoie, and sold us, for ten centimes, 
a piece of pudding six inches long. We feasted on this every day 
before our drill, and drank ten centimes' worth of Suresnes wine, to 
help us to wait for the soup at ten o'clock. What Vdlite or old 
Grenadier of the Guard has not known Mere aux bouts? — Author's 
Npt9> 



POLISH HOSPITALITY 

I, too, tried to rest, but my sleep was constantly broken 
by the pains in my legs, the result of my continued over- 
walking. The dog began to bark soon after Picart went 
to sleep ; he roused the people of the house, and the old 
man, who was seated on a bench near the stove, got up 
and seized a lance fastened to a long pine-branch, his only 
means of defence. He ran to the door, followed by his 
wife, and I did the same, taking care not to wake Picart, 
and armed myself with my musket and bayonet. We 
heard someone trying the outer door, and in reply to the 
old man's question of who was there, a nasal voice 
answered, ' Samuel !' The wife then told her husband that 
it was a Jew from the village. I resumed my place on 
hearing that a son of Israel was at the door, taking care 
to collect all our possessions around me, so little confidence 
had I in the new-comer. I slept for two hours, when 
Picart awoke me to take my share of the mutton soup. 
He still complained of a bad pain in his head, saying he 
had dreamt of nothing but Paris and Courbevoie, and, for- 
getting that he had already related his dream to me, told 
me that he had been dancing at the barriere du Roule,* 
and had drunk with the Grenadiers who were killed at the 
Battle of Eylau. 

As we sat down to eat, the Jew gave us a bottle of gin, 
which Picart took possession of at once, and speaking in 
German, he asked its history. When he tasted it, all the 
thanks the Jew got was the exclamation that it was not 
worth the devil. It was bad gin made from potato- 
spirit. 

The idea came to me that we might make use of the Jew 
as a guide ; we had quite enough with us to tempt his love 
of gain. Picart approved of my plan, and just as he was 

* Place where the old Grenadiers of the Guard met their mistresses 
and danced. — Author's Note. 

179 N — 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

prepared to propose it, the horse raised himself, terrified, 
trying to break his tether, and the dog gave tongue, and 
at the same moment some wolves began howling at the 
door. Picart took his musket to chase them away, but 
our host warned him against this, on account of the Rus- 
sians. He contented himself, therefore, by taking his 
sword in one hand, and in the other a piece of flaming 
pine. Then opening the door, he ran at the wolves and 
put them to flight. He came in again, saying that 
the air had done him good, and that his headache had 
nearly gone. The wolves afterwards came back, but we 
took no notice of them. 

As I had expected, the Jew asked us if we had anything 
to sell or exchange. I said to Picart that now was the 
time for proposals, as we wanted to be put on our way to 
Borisow, or to the first French outpost. I asked him how 
far we were from the Berezina, and he answered nine 
leagues by the high road ; but we made him understand 
that we wished to get there by a shorter route, and I 
proposed that he should guide us if we could arrange it. 
We gave him the three pairs of epaulettes, and a bank- 
note worth 100 roubles, the whole the value of 500 francs; 
I made the conditions, however, that the epaulettes should 
be left in charge of our host, who would hand them over 
to him on his return, and that I would give him the bank- 
note on arriving at our destination — that is, at the first 
French outpost. When he returned the epaulettes would 
be given to him on presentation of a silk handkerchief 
which I showed to the assembled company. The hand- 
kerchief was to be given to the younger daughter, who 
had washed my feet, and the Jew agreed to give our 
host and hostess 25 roubles. The son of Israel accepted 
the conditions, observing, however, that he should be 
running a great many risks in thus leaving the high road. 

180 



AN ATTACK OF INSANITY 

Our host said how sorry he felt that he was not ten years 
younger, so that he might guide us for nothing, and defend 
us also against any Russians who might come ; saying this, 
he shook his halberd. He gave the Jew a great many 
instructions as to the road, and he at last consented 
to guide us, after satisfying himself that everything we 
had given him was of full value. 

At nine in the morning we started. It was November 24th. 
The Polish family stood on the highest piece of ground 
they could find, following us with their eyes, and waving 
to us with their hands. Our guide went first, leading our 
horse. Picart talked to himself, sometimes standing and 
going through the musket-drill. All at once he stopped, 
and, on turning round, I saw him motionless, porting arms 
as if on parade. Suddenly he thundered out, ' Vive 
I'Empereur!' I went up to him, and, taking him by the 
arm, I said, ' What is the matter with you, Picart ?' fearing 
that he had gone mad. 

'What!' he answered, as if only just awake, 'isn't the 
Emperor inspecting us ?' 

I was distressed to hear him, and answering that it was 
not to-day, but to-morrow, I took his arm, and hurried 
him along to catch up with the Jew. Large tears were 
falling down his face. 

' What,' I said, 'an old soldier crying!' 

' Let me cry,' he said ; ' it will do me good. I feel 
miserable, and if we don't get to the regiment to-morrow, 
it's all up with me.' 

' Cheer up ! We shall be there to-morrow, I hope, or 
the next day at latest. How's this? You are taking on 
Just like a woman.' 

' That is so,' he said; ' I can't explain it. I was either 
sleeping or dreaming ; but I am better now.' 

' That's right, mon vieux. It's nothing ; it has often 

181 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

happened to me before. But since you came I have felt 
quite hopeful.' 

As I talked, I saw our guide stop continually to listen. 
Suddenly Picart threw himself full length in the snow, 
and shouted in a commanding voice, ' Silence !' 

* Now,' I said to myself, * he's done with — my old 
comrade has gone mad ! What will become of me ?' 

I looked at him petrified. He then got up, and shouted 
again, * Vive I'Empereur ! The guns ! Listen ! We're 
saved !' 

* What do you mean ?' I said. 

* Yes, listen,' he went on. 
I listened, and really heard the sound of distant guns. 

* Ah, now I can breathe again !' he said ; ' the Emperor 
is not a prisoner, as that fool of an emigrant said yesterday. 
It had got regularly on my brain, and I should have died 
of rage and mortification. Now let us go in that direc- 
tion ; it's a safe guide.' 

The Israelite assured us that the guns were in the direc- 
tion of the Berezina, and my old comrade was so delighted 
that he began to sing : 

Air du Cure de Pompomie. 

* Les Autrichiens disaient tout bas ; 
Les Frangais vont vite en besogne 
Prenez, tandis qu'ils n'y sont pas, 
L' Alsace et la Bourgogne. 
Ah ! tu t'en souviendras, la-ri-ra, 
Du depart de Boulogne ' {bis).* 

Half an hour later we could not advance any further, 
so difficult had our march become ; our guide believed he 
had missed the way. We heard the booming of the guns 
continually ; it might be about mid-day. All at once the 

* This song had been composed on leaving the camp at Boulogne 
in 1805, to go to Austria for the Battle of Austerlitz. — Author's Note. 

182 



WE LOSE OUR WAY 

sound of the guns ceased, the wind got up again, and the 
snow began falling in such quantities that we could not 
see each other, and the poor son of Israel gave up leading 
the horse. We advised him to mount the beast, which 
advice he took. I began to feel terribly tired, and uneasy 
in my mind, but said nothing ; while Picart swore like a 
madman because he could not hear the guns, and at the 
wind which prevented our hearing. The trees were now 
so close together that we could not possibly penetrate 
through them. Every moment something caught our feet, 
and we fell headlong on the ground half buried in the 
snow ; and after much painful walking we found our- 
selves at the place we had left an hour before. 

We now stopped for a few minutes, drank some of the 
bad gin which the Jew had given us, and discussed our 
next move. We decided that we must return to the high- 
road. I asked the guide if he could take us back to where 
we had spent the night, in the event of our not being able 
to find the road. He said he could, but that we must make 
landmarks where we passed. Picart accomplished this by 
* blazing ' the young birches and pines as he went alongc 
When we had gone about half a league, we came upon a 
cottage ; it was only just in time, as my strength was now 
failing me. We decided to halt there for half an hour 
while we fed the horse, and ourselves also. By a stroke 
of luck, we found there a quantity of dry wood for burning, 
two benches made of rough wood, and three sheepskins ; 
these we thought we would take away with us, in case we 
were obliged to spend the night in the -forest. 

We warmed ourselves while we ate a piece of horseflesh. 
Our guide would not touch it, but drew from under his 
sheepskin cloak a wretched-looking cake of barley-flour 
mixed with straw, which he begged us to share with him. 
He swore to us by his father Abraham that he had nothing 

183 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

with him but that and a few nuts. We therefore divided 
it into four ; the Jew took two parts, and we each had one. 
We also drank a Httle of the bad gin. When I offered 
some to him he refused, as he would not drink out of our 
cup, but he accepted some poured into the hollow of his 
hand. 

Then he told us that the next hut was a good hour's 
walk off, so we resolved to set out at once for fear of being 
overtaken by the darkness. The road was so narrow that 
we had the greatest difficulty in getting along, but Samuel, 
our guide, had pluck, and kept on assuring us that it 
would become wider farther on. 

As a finishing stroke to our misfortunes, the snow 
began to fall again heavily, and completely hid the way 
from us. Our guide burst into tears, sa3'ing that he did 
not know where we were. We tried to retrace our steps, 
but this was worse, as the snow flew straight in our faces, 
and now the best thing we could do was to stand against 
a group of pine-trees, waiting till it pleased God to stop 
the snow-storm. It lasted for more than half an hour 
longer. We were almost perished with cold. At times 
Picart swore, and then he would hum : 

' Ah ! tu t'en souviendras, la-ri-ra, 
Du depart de Boulogne I' 

The Jew continually cried out, ' My God ! my God !' For 
my part, I said nothing, but my thoughts were gloomy, 
and had it not been for my bearskin and the Rabbi's cap, 
which I wore under my shako, I should have yielded to 
the cold. 

As soon as the weather grew a little better, we tried to 
find our way, but a complete calm had followed the storm, 
so that we could not distinguish the north from the south. 
We were now completely lost. We walked on at random 

184 



ANOTHER MISFORTUNE 

in great circles, continually coming back to the same 
place. 

Picart swore continually, but now it was at the Jew. 
However, after walking for some time, we found our- 
selves in an open space, about 400 yards in circumference, 
and we hoped to find a road here, but after wandering 
round it several times, we discovered nothing. We looked 
at each other, hoping for an idea firom someone. My old 
comrade leant his musket against a tree, and, looking all 
round him, he drew his sword from its sheath. Hardly 
had he done so, when the poor Jew, thinking he was 
going to be killed, set up a piercing shriek, and, leaving 
the horse, prepared to fly ; his strength, however, failed 
him, and he fell on his knees, imploring mercy of God 
and of us ; quite needlessly, however, as Picart had only 
drawn his sword to cut down a small birch -tree and 
consult it as to our direction. He looked fixedly at the 
part of the tree still in the ground, and then said calmly, 
' That is the direction we must take. The bark on this 
side, which must be the north, is a little red and rotted, 
and the other side, that of the south, is white and perfect. 
Let us walk towards the south.' 

We had no time to lose, as our greatest dread was that 
night should overtake us. We tried to beat out a path 
for ourselves, taking care not to lose the direction of our 
starting-point. 

Just then the Jew, who was in front of us, uttered a cr}-, 
and we saw him stretched full length on the ground. He 
had fallen down in trj-ing to drag the horse between two 
trees where there was not room to pass. The poor cognia 
could neither go forward nor back. We had to stop and 
disentangle the man from the horse ; the burden the horse 
carried, as well as his harness, had been pressed backwards 
on to his hind-quarters. 

185 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

I. was much put out at this loss of time. I would 
willingly have left the horse behind, but at the end of half 
an hour's efforts we discovered a fairly wide path, which 
the Jew recognised as being the continuation of the road 
we had lost. He knew the road b}^ some beehives in the 
trees, too high, unfortunately, for us to reach.* 

Picart looked at his watch, and saw that it was nearly 
four o'clock, therefore we had no time to lose. We now 
found ourselves close to a frozen lake, known to our guide. 
We crossed it without difficulty, and, turning to the left, 
continued our journey. Very soon we saw four men, who 
stopped on seeing us. We naturally got on guard at once, 
but it was soon apparent that they were more frightened 
than we, and after consulting together they came towards 
us, wishing us good-day. They were four Jews, known to 
our guide, belonging to a village on the high road. As 
the village was occupied by the French army, they could 
not possibly remain there without dying of cold and 
hunger. The provisions were all gone, and not a single 
house was left for shelter, even for the Emperor. From 
them we learnt, to our joy, that the French army was 
only two leagues off. They advised us, however, to go no 
further that day, as we might easily miss the road. We 
could pass the night in the first hut we should come to, 
not far off. They left us, bidding us good-night, and we 
fortunately soon found our resting-place for the night. 
There was a quantity of straw and wood in the hut, and 
we immediately lit a good fire in an earthenware stove we 
found there. It would have taken too long to make soup, 

* In Poland, Lithuania, and a part of Russia, large trees are chosen ; 
and about ten feet from the ground a hole of about a foot deep and 
wide is made. Here the bees deposit their honey, and often it is 
stolen by the bears, who are very numerous in these forests, and 
very greedy. Thus the hives frequently become traps to take them. — 
Author^ s Note. 

1 86 



WOLVES 

so we contented ourselves with a piece of roast meat, and 
then decided to watch in turn two hours at a time, with 
loaded weapons near us. 

I do not know how long I had been asleep, when I was 
awakened by the horse, frightened in his turn by the 
howling of the wolves outside. Picart took a long pole, 
and tying some straw and resinous wood to the end, he lit 
it and rushed on the animals, holding his flaming pole in 
one hand and his sword in the other, and for the moment 
they fled. He returned triumphant, but he had scarcely 
lain down again when they came back with redoubled 
fury. He then took a great piece of lighted wood, and, 
throwing it a dozen yards off, he told the Jew to take out 
a quantity of dry wood to keep up the blaze. After this 
we heard no more howling. 

At about four o'clock Picart woke me with an agreeable 
surprise. Without telling me, he had made soup with 
some oatmeal and flour he had left, and had roasted a 
good piece of horseflesh. We both set to with a good 
appetite. Picart had given the Jew his share, and we 
took care of the horse also. We had filled several wooden 
tubs with snow, which was now melted ; we purified it by 
putting in a quantity of lighted charcoal. This served for 
our drink, for soup, and for watering the horse, who had 
drunk nothing since the evening before. After looking to 
our boots, I took a piece of charcoal, and wrote the 
following inscription on a plank in large letters : 

* Two Grenadiers of the Emperor Napoleon's Guard, lost 
in this forest, passed the nights of November 24th and 25th 
in this hut. The day before they enjoyed the hospitality 
of a kind Polish family.' This inscription I signed. 

We had scarcely gone fifty yards, when our horse 
stopped short. Our guide said he thought he saw some- 
thing on the road, and on going nearer there were two 

187 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

wolves sitting waiting for us. Picart fired, and the 
wolves disappeared. Half an hour afterwards we were 
safe. 

We first came across a bivouac of twelve men, German 
soldiers attached to our army. We stopped near their fire 
to ask for news. They looked at us without answering, 
and then consulted among themselves. They were in the 
last stage of destitution. Three dead bodies were lying 
near them. As our guide had now kept his bargain, we 
gave him what we promised him, and after asking him 
again to thank the good Poles for us, we bade him good- 
bye and a safe journey. He strode off quickly and dis- 
appeared. 

We now prepared to gain the high road, only ten 
minutes' walk off, when five of the Germans surrounded 
us, begging us to leave our horse behind to be killed, and 
assuring us we should have our share. Two of them took 
hold of his bridle, but Picart, who had had enough of this, 
said, in bad German, that if they did not leave hold of the 
bridle he would cut their faces for them with his sword, 
and he drew it out of its sheath. The Germans took no 
notice, and Picart repeated what he had said. No answer. 
He then gave the two holding the bridle a smart blow 
with his fist which stretched them in the snow. He asked 
me to hold the horse, and said to the others : * Come on, 
if you have any pluck.' Seeing, however, that no one 
moved, he took three pieces of meat out of the saucepan 
and gave them to the men. Those lying on the ground got 
up at once for their share. I saw that they were almost dead 
of hunger, and to make up for our rough treatment o 
them, I gave them a piece already cooked, weighing more 
than three pounds. They threw themselves on the food 
ravenously enough, and we continued on our way. A little 
farther on, we came on two fires almost extinguished, 

1 88 



WE REJOIN THE ARMY 

several men, half dead, lying around them. Two of them 
spoke to us ; one cried, ' Comrades, are you going to kill 
the horse ? I only want a little blood !' 

We did not answer. We were still a gun-shot from the 
highroad. When at last we reached it, I said aloud to 
Picart, * We are saved !' 

A man near us, wrapped in a half-burned cloak, said, 
raising his voice, 'Not yet!' He moved off, looking at me 
and shrugging his shoulders. He knew what was going 
on better than I did. 

Soon afterwards we saw a detachment of about thirty 
men, engineers and pontonniers. I recognised them as 
the men we had met at Orcha, where they formed part 
of the garrison.* This detachment, commanded by three 
officers, and which had joined us only four days ago, had not 
suffered. They looked strong and well, and were travelling 
in the direction of the Berezina. I asked an officer to 
direct us to the Imperial quarters, and he replied that it 
was still in the rear, but had begun to move, and that we 
should soon see the head of the column appear. He 
warned us to look well after our horse, as the Emperor 
had given orders to take all that were found for the use of 
the artillery and the wounded. While we waited for the 
column we hid ourselves in the wood. 

I cannot possibly describe all the sufferings, anguish, 
and scenes of desolation I had seen and passed through, 
nor those which I was fated still to see and endure ; they 
left deep and terrible memories, which I have never 
forgotten. 

This was November 25th, perhaps about seven o'clock 
in the morning, and as yet it was hardly light. I was 
musing on all I had seen, when the head of the column 

* T\i& pontomiiers and the engineers saved us, and to them we owed 
the construction of the bridges over the Berdzina. — Author's Note. 

i8g 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

appeared. Those in advance seemed to be Generals, a few 
on horseback, but the greater part on foot. There were 
also a great number of other officers, the remnant of the 
Doomed Squadron and Battalion formed on the 22nd, and 
barely existing at the end of three days. Those on foot 
dragged themselves painfully along, almost all of them 
having their feet frozen and wrapped in rags or in bits 
of sheepskin, and all nearly dying of hunger. Afterwards 
came the small remains of the Cavalry of the Guard. 
The Emperor came next, on foot, and carrying a baton. 
He wore a large cloak lined with fur, a dark-red velvet 
cap with black fox fur on his head. Murat walked on 
foot at his right, and on his left the Prince Eugene, 
Viceroy of Italy. Next came the Marshals, Berthier — 
Prince of Neufchatel — Ney, Mortier, Lefebvre, with other 
Marshals and Generals whose corps had been nearly 
annihilated. 

The Emperor mounted a horse as soon as he passed : 
so did a few of those with him, the greater part of them 
having no more horses to ride. Seven or eight hundred 
officers and non-commissioned officers followed, walking 
in order and perfect silence, and carrying the eagles of 
their different regiments, which so often had led them to 
victory. This was all that remained of 60,000 men. 

After them came the Imperial Guard on foot, marching 
also in order. The first were the Chasseurs. Poor Picart, 
who had not seen the army for a month, gazed in silence ; 
but it was easy to see how much he felt. He struck the 
ground many times with the butt of his musket, then his 
breast and forehead with his clenched hand. Great tears 
fell from his eyes, rolled down his cheeks, and froze in his 
moustache. Then, turning to me, he said : 

' I don't know, mon pays, if I am awake or dreaming. 
It breaks my heart to see our Emperor on foot, his baton 

190 



THE WRECK OF AN ARMY 

in his hand. He, so great, who made us all so proud of 
him !' He went on : * Did you notice how he looked 
at us ?' 

The Emperor had turned his head towards us as he 
passed. He looked at us as he always looked at the men 
of his Guard when he met them alone. He seemed, in 
this hour of misfortune, to inspire us by his glance with 
confidence and courage. Picart declared that the Emperor 
had recognised him, which was quite possible. My old 
comrade, fearful of looking ridiculous, had taken off his 
white cloak and carried it over his left arm, and although 
his head still pained him, he had put on his fur cap, not 
liking to appear in the sheepskin the Poles had given him. 
Poor Picart forgot all his own miseries, and now only 
thought of the Emperor, and of the comrades he longed 
to see. 

At last the old Grenadiers appeared. These were the 
first regiment ; Picart belonged to the second. We were 
not long in catching sight of them, however, as the first 
column was a short one — in my opinion quite half were 
missing. When at last his own regiment came up to us, 
Picart advanced to join it. 

Then someone said : 

' Look ! Isn't that like Picart ?' 

* Yes,' answered Picart, ' it is I ; and I will not leave 
you again, except to die.' 

The company immediately took possession of him (for 
the sake of the horse, of course). I walked with him for 
some time longer, to get a piece of the horse's flesh if they 
killed him, but a shout was heard : 

' The horse belongs to the company, like the man !' 

' I belong to the company, certainly,' said Picart ; ' but 
the sergeant, who claims a bit of the horse, killed his 
master in the first place.' 

191 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

' Very well, then,' said a sergeant who knew me, ' he 
shall have some.' 

This sergeant took the place of a sergeant-major who 
had died the day before. 

The column came to a halt, and an officer asked Picart 
where he came from, and how he happened to be in front, 
as those who had escorted the convoy had come back 
three days ago. The halt lasted for some time. Picart 
related his adventures, stopping continually to ask after 
several comrades whom he failed to see in the ranks. 
They were all dead. He dared not ask after his bed- 
mate, who was also from his own country. But at last 
he ventured. 

' And where is Rougeau ?' 

' At Krasnoe,' said the drummer. 

* Ah ! I understand.' 

' Yes,' continued the drummer, ' he died from a ball 
which cut both his legs off. Before he died he made you 
his executor. He gave me for you his cross, his watch, 
and a little leather bag containing money and different 
things. He begged me to tell you that they were for 
his mother. If, like him, you were so unfortunate as not 
to see France again, you were to commission someone 
else.' 

The drummer, named Patrice, then took all the things 
out of his knapsack before all the company, saying to 
Picart : 

* I give them to you just as I received them from his 
hands. He took them out of his knapsack — which we 
replaced under his head — and directly afterwards he died.' 

' If I have the good fortune to get back to Picardy,' 
said my friend, ' I will carry out my comrade's last 
wishes.' 

They began the march, and I bade good-bye to my old 



THE WRECK OF AN ARMY 

friend, saying we should meet again at bivouac in the 
evening. 

Then I waited by the side of the road until my regiment 
came by, as I heard it formed part of the rear-guard. 

After the Grenadiers came more than 30,000 men, 
almost all with their feet and hands frozen, a great 
number of them without firearms, as they were quite 
unable to make use of them. Many of them walked 
leaning on sticks ; generals, colonels, other officers, 
privates, men on horseback, men on foot, men of all the 
different nations making up our arm'y, passed in a con- 
fused rabble, covef'ed with cloaks and coats all torn and 
burnt, wrapped in bits of cloth, in sheepskins, in every- 
thing they could lay their hands on 4:o keep out the cold. 
They walked silently without complaining, keeping them- 
selves as ready as they could for any possible struggle with 
the enemy. The Emperor in our midst inspired us with 
confidence, and found resources to save us yet. There he 
was — always the great genius ; however miserable we 
might be, with him we were always sure of victory in the 
end. 

I had more than an hour to wait before the column had 
passed by, and after that there was a long train of miser- 
able wretches following the regiments mechanically. They 
had reached the last stage of destitution, and could not 
hope to get across the Berezina, although we were now so 
near it. Then I saw the remains of the Young Guard, 
skirmishers, flank-men, and some of the light companies, 
escaped from Krasnoe. All these regiments mingled 
together marched in perfect order. Behind them came 
the artillery and several waggons. The bulk of the 
artillery, commanded by General Negre, had already gone 
before. Next came the Fusiliers-Chasseurs. Their numbers 
were greatly diminished. Our regiment was still separated 

193 o 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNK 

from me by some pieces of artillery, drawn by poor beasts 
with no power left in them. After that I saw my regiment 
marching to left and right of the road to join the Fusiliers- 
Chasseurs. The Adjutant- Major, Roustan, saw me the 
first, and cried out, ' Hallo, poor Bourgogne ! Is that 
you ? We thought you were dead behind us, and here 
you are alive in front ! This is first-rate. Have you 
met some of our men behind ?' I told him that for 
the last three days I had been in the woods to avoid 
being taken by the Russians. M. Cesarisse said to the 
Colonel that he knew I had stayed behind since the 22nd, 
and that he was surprised beyond everything to see me 
again. My company came at last, and I took my own 
place in it before my friends were aware of it.* When at 
last they saw me, they came round me asking questions 
which I had not strength to answer ; I was as overwhelmed 
to find myself once more amongst m}' comrades as if I 
had been with my own family. They told me they could 
not imagine how I had become separated from them, and 
that if they had only known I was ill and could not follow, 
it should not have happened. As I glanced over the com- 
pany, I saw that their numbers also were terribly diminished. 
The Captain was missing. He had lost all his toes by the 
frost, and just at that moment they did not know where 
he was, although they had found a wretched horse for him 
to ride. Two of my friends took hold of me under the 
arms, seeing that I could scarcely walk.f 

We joined the Fusiliers-Chasseurs. I never remember in 
all my life having such a terrible longing for sleep, and 
yet we were obliged to go on. My friends supported me 

* They marched with their heads bent, their eyes fixed on the 
ground, hardly seeing anything ; the frost and the bivouac fires had 
nearly ruined their sight. — Author's Note. 

t Grangier and Leboude. — Author's Note. 

194 



THE CROSSING OF THE BER^ZmA 

under the arms again, telling me to go to sleep. This we 
did for each other in turn, for sleep overcame us all. 
Frequently it happened that we stopped short, all three of 
us having gone off. The cold, fortunately, was much less 
that day, otherwise most of us might have been frozen to 
death. 

In the middle of the night we reached Borisow. The 
Emperor stayed in a country house on the right of the 
road, and the Guard bivouacked round it. General 
Roguet, who commanded us, took possession of a green- 
house for the night. I and my friends were behind it. 
During the night the cold increased very much. The next 
day (the 26th) we took up a position on the banks of the 
Berezina. The Emperor was at Studianka, a little village 
on a hill in front. 

We saw the brave pontonniers working hard at the 
bridges for us to cross. They had worked all night, 
standing up to their shoulders in ice-cold water, en- 
couraged by their General.* These brave men sacrificed 
their lives to save the army. One of my friends told me 
as a fact that he had seen the Emperor himself handing 
wine to them. 

The first bridge was finished at two o'clock in the after- 
noon. It was a painful and difficult piece of work, as the 
trestles sank continually in the mud. Marshal Oudinot's 
corps crossed immediately to attack the Russians, who 
had tried to prevent our passage. The cavalry of the 
2nd Corps had already swum across, not waiting for 
the bridge to be finished, and every man took a foot 
soldier behind him. The second bridge, for the artillery 
and cavalry, was finished at four o'clock. f 

* General Eh\6.—Aui/tor's Note. 

t This second bridge broke soon afterwards, when the artillery 
began to cross. A great many perished. — Author's Note. 

195 0—2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

Directly we arrived at the banks of the river I lay down 
wrapped up in my fur, and then found myself trembling 
all over with fever. I was delirious for a long time. I 
fancied I was at my father's house, eating potatoes, bread 
and butter a la flamande, and drinking beer. I do not 
know how long I was in this condition, but I remember 
my friend bringing me some hot broth in a bowl, which I 
drank eagerly, and I was soon in a perspiration, in spite of 
the cold. Besides my bearskin cloak, my friends had 
covered me with a great piece of waterproofing they had 
torn off a waggon. The rest of the night I lay quiet 
without moving. 

On the next day (the 27th) I felt rather better, but 
terribly weak. That day the Emperor crossed the Bere- 
zina with part of the Guard, and about a thousand men 
belonging to Marshal Ney's corps. Our regiment remained 
on the banks. Suddenly I heard my name called ; I 
turned my head and saw M. Peniaux, director of the 
Emperor's stage posts and relays, who had searched 
me out. They told him that I was ill, and he came at 
once, not to give me anything — he had nothing to give, 
except encouragement. I thanked him for his kindness, 
and said I did not expect even to cross the Berezina, or to 
see France again ; but I begged him, if he were more 
fortunate than I, to tell my parents of my sad situation. 
He offered me money, but I declined it. 1 would willingly 
have exchanged 800 francs for the potatoes and bread- 
and-butter I dreamed I had eaten at home. 

Before he left me he pointed out the house where the 
Emperor had stayed, saying he had been unfortunate, as 
the house was a flour warehouse, but the Russians had 
taken it all, so that he had nothing to offer me. He shook 
me by the hand and left me to cross the bridge. 

As soon as he had gone, I remembered that he had 

196 



THE CROSSING OF THE BEREZINA 

spoken of some flour in the Emperor's house, so I rose, 
and, weak as I was, I dragged myself in that direction. 
The Emperor had only just left the house, and yet they 
had already taken off all the doors. I went through several 
rooms, and the traces of flour could be seen in them all. 
In one of them the boards in the floor were very badly 
laid down ; there was more than an inch between them. 
I sat down and scraped out with my sword as much dirt 
as flour, which I collected and put into my handkerchief. 
After working more than an hour, I got out about two 
pounds in weight, an eighth of which was dirt, straw, and 
little bits of wood. That did not matter in the least ; I 
went out happy. As I made my way towards our bivouac 
I saw a fire, where several men from the Guard were 
warming themselves. Amongst them was a musician from 
our regiment, who had a tin bowl on his knapsack. I 
signed to him to come to me, and as he seemed unwilling 
to leave his place, I pointed to my parcel, making him 
understand there was something inside it. He rose with 
difficulty, and when he was near enough I said, in a voice 
which the others could not hear, that if he would lend me 
his bowl, I would make some cakes which we could share. 
He consented directly, and as there were several fires 
near, we looked out for one in a quiet place. I then made 
a paste and four cakes from it ; the half I gave to my 
musician, and took him back with me to the regiment, 
still camped on the bank of the river. I divided the rest 
of the cakes with the men who had helped me along the 
road ; they thought them very good, still hot as they were 
from the baking. After drinking some of the muddy 
water of the Berezina, we warmed ourselves, waiting for 
the order to cross the bridges. 

Near our fire was a man belonging to the company 
attired in full uniform I I asked him what that was for, 

197 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

and he only laughed at me. The poor fellow was ill ; that 
laugh was the laugh of death, as he succumbed during 
the night. 

A little further off was an old soldier with two chevrons 
— fifteen years service, that is. His wife was cantiniere. 
They had lost everything — carts, horses, baggage, besides 
two children, who had died in the snow ; all this poor 
woman had left to her was despair and a dying husband. 
The poor creature, still a young woman, was sitting on 
the snow, holding her dying husband's head on her knees. 
She did not weep ; her grief seemed beyond that. Behind 
her, leaning on her shoulder, was a beautiful young girl of 
thirteen or fourteen years, the only child remaining to 
her. This poor child was sobbing bitterly, her tears falling 
and freezing on her father's cold face. She wore a soldier's 
cape over her poor dress, and a sheepskin on her shoulders 
to keep out the cold.* None of their own comrades were 
there to comfort them. Their regiment was utterly de- 
stroyed. We did all that we possibly could for them, but 
I was not able to find out if these unhappy people were 
saved. Whichever way one turned, these terrible scenes 
were taking place. Old carts and waggons furnished us 
with wood enough to warm ourselves, and we made the 
most of this opportunity. My friends wanted to hear 
how I had spent my three days of absence. They told 
me on their side that on the 23rd, when they were marching 
across the forest, they caught sight of the gth Corps drawn 
up by the roadside, shouting 'Vive I'Empereur!' They 
had not set eyes on this corps for five months. These 
men, who had scarcely suffered at all, and had never wanted 
food, were distressed at seeing their comrades' destitu- 
tion. They could hardly believe that this was the Moscow 

* The girl, and also her mother, wore Astrakan caps on their heads. 
— Author's Note. 



THE CROSSING OF THE B^.RIi:ZINA 

army, then so splendid, now so miserable, and so sadly 
reduced in numbers. 

The 2nd Corps d'Armee, commanded by Marshal 
Oudinot, and the gth by Marshal Victor, Duke of Bellune, 
also the Poles under General Dombrowski, had not been to 
Moscow, but had remained in Lithuania. For the last 
few days, however, they had been engaged against the 
Russians, had repulsed them, and taken a large quantity of 
baggage ; as the Russians retired they had burnt the bridge. 
This was the only bridge over the B^r^zina, and had stopped 
our advance, keeping us penned up between two forests in 
the middle of a mirsh. We were a medley of Frenchmen, 
Italians, Spaniards, Portuguese, Croats, Germans, Poles, 
Romans, Neapolitans, and even Prussians. I saw some 
canteen men whose wives and children were in great 
despair, weeping. We noticed that the men seemed to 
suffer more, both morally and physically, than the women. 
The women bore their sufferings and privations with an 
astonishing courage, enough to reflect shame on certain 
men, who had no courage and resignation to endure their 
trials. Very few of these women died, except those who 
fell into the B^r^zina in crossing the bridge, or some who 
were suffocated. 

We were quiet when night came, every one in his 
bivouac, and no one came to cross the bridge during the 
night of the 27th-28th, a most astonishing thing. I slept, 
as we had a good fire, but in the middle of the night I was 
seized with fever again, and became delirious. The sound 
"of firing woke me at about seven o'clock. I got up, took 
my firearms, and without speaking to anyone I went up 
to the bridge and crossed it alone. I met no one but the 
pontonniers, who camped on the two banks to repair the 
bridge in case of any accident. 

The first thing I saw when I reached the other side was 

199 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

a large wooden hut. The Emperor had slept there, and had 
not come out yet. I was shivering with fever, so went 
up towards a fire where several officers were engaged in 
studying a map. I received such a cold welcome, how- 
ever, that I hastily retired. One of our men, who had 
observed me, now came up to tell me that our regiment 
had crossed the bridge, and was in the second line of battle 
behind Marshal Oudinot's corps. As the cannon roared, 
and the bullets came rattling over to where we were 
standing, I started off to join the regiment, saying to 
myself that I had better be shot than die of cold and 
hunger, so I walked forward into the wood. On the way 
I overtook a corporal of my company dragging himself 
painfully along, so we helped each other and arrived at 
the regiment together. There we saw a fire, and as the 
corporal was shivering with fever, I led him up to it. 
Hardly had we arrived, when a ball struck my poor com- 
rade in the chest, and stretched him dead at m}' feet. I 
could not help crying out, ' Poor Marcelin i How lucky 
you are !' Just then the rumour ran that Marshal Oudinot 
was wounded. 

When the Colonel saw one of his men fall, he ran to 
the fire, and noticing how ill I was, he ordered me to go 
back to the end of the bridge and wait for men who 
had not come up, and bring them to the regiment. The 
greatest disorder prevailed at this place. All the men 
who had not taken advantage of the night to cross had 
thrown themselves in a mass on to the banks of the river 
as soon as they heard the artillery, in order to cross by 
the bridges. 

A corporal of our company named Gros-Jean, who came 
from Paris, asked me with tears in his eyes if I had seen 
his brother. I said no. Then he told me that he had 
been with him ever since the Battle of Krasnoe, as he was 

200 



THE CROSSING OF THE BEREZINA 

ill with fever; but just now, by some dreadful fatality, 
they had been separated. Thinking he had gone on in 
front, he had been inquiring of his comrades on all sides, 
and not finding him, he was going back over the bridge, 
for if he did not find him he would die. Wishing to 
dissuade him from such a fatal resolution, I begged him 
to stay with me at the head of the bridge, where we should 
very likely see his brother as he passed. But the poor 
fellow stripped off his arms and knapsack, saying that, as 
I had lost my own, he would make me a present of them 
if he did not return, and that there were plenty of muskets 
over at the other side. He then made as if he would go, 
but I stopped him. I pointed out to him the number of 
dead and dying already on the bridge, these last preventing 
others passing over by catching hold of their legs, and all 
rolling together in the Berezina. They appeared for a 
moment amongst bits of ice, only to disappear altogether 
and make way for others. Gros-Jean did not even hear 
me. Fixing his eyes on this scene of horror, he thought 
he perceived his brother on the bridge, struggling to clear 
a pathway for himself through the crowd. So, listening 
only to the voice of despair, he climbed over the dead 
bodies of men and horses which blocked up the way 
from the bridge,* and rushed on. Those he first met tried 
to thrust him back, but he was strong, and did not give 
way. He succeeded in reaching the unfortunate man 
whom he had taken for his brother ; but, alas ! it was 
not he. I followed all his movements with my eyes. 
Seeing his mistake, he redoubled his efforts to reach the 

* At the outlet of the bridge was a marsh, a sHmy, muddy place, 
where many of the horses sank, and could not get out again. Many 
of the men, also, being dragged by the weight of the others to the 
outlet, sank down exhausted when left to themselves in the marsh, and 
were trampled upon by others coming on behind. — Author's Aote, 

30 1 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

further end ; but he was knocked over on to his back, 
on the edge of the bridge, and nearly thrown into the 
water. They walked over his body, his head, but nothing 
vanquished him. He collected all his strength for a new 
effort to rise, and seized hold of a Cuirassier's leg, who, in 
his turn, got hold of another man's arm. The Cuirassier, 
however, was hindered by a cloak over his shoulder ; he 
staggered, fell, and rolled into the Berezina, dragging after 
him Gros-Jean and the man whose arm he held. They 
sank then, adding to the number of men underneath the 
bridge and on each side of it. 

The Cuirassier and his companion disappeared under 
the ice ; but Gros-Jean, more fortunate, had seized one 
of the supports of the bridge, against which he found a 
horse. Climbing on to the horse by his knees, he begged 
for help, for a long time speaking to deaf ears. Finally 
some engineers threw him a rope, which he was clever 
enough to catch and tie round his body ; and thus from 
one support to another, over dead bodies and lumps of 
ice, he was drawn over to the further side. I did not see 
him again ; but I heard the next day that he had found 
his brother, a little distance off, but in a dying condition. 
Thus perished these two poor brothers, and also a third 
in the 2nd Lancers. When I got back to Paris I saw 
their parents, who begged me for news of their children. 
I left them one ray of hope by saying that their sons had 
been taken prisoners, but I felt certain they died. 

While these sad events were taking place, the Grenadiers 
of the Guard, accompanied by an officer, went round the 
bivouacs, asking for dry wood to warm the Emperor. 
Everyone willingly gave the best they had. Even dying 
men raised their heads to say, ' Take what you can for 
the Emperor.' By this time it might be ten o'clock, and 
the second bridge, built for the cavalry and artillery, had 



THE CROSSING OF THE BEREZINA 

just broken in under the weight of the latter ; a number 
of men sank with it, and most of them perished. The 
disorder and confusion were thus doubly increased, for, 
as everyonje rushed to the other bridge, it became an 
absolute impossibility to get across. Men, horses, carts, 
canteen men, with their wives and children, were all 
mingled in frightful disorder, crushed against each other ; 
and in spite of the shouts of Marshal Lefebvre, who stood 
at the end of the bridge to keep all the order possible, he 
could not remain there. He was swept on with the others 
and forced to cross, to avoid being suffocated or crushed 
to death. I had managed to get together five men of our 
regiment, three of whom had lost their firearms in the 
confusion, and I had ordered them to make a fire. I 
kept my eyes fixed all the time on the bridge, and saw 
a man in a white cloak ; he was pushed by those behind 
him, and fell over the body of a horse stretched on the 
ground. With extreme difficulty he got up, staggered a 
few steps, fell again, rose a second time, only to fall again 
by our fire. He remained thus for a little while, and, 
thinking that he was dead, we were about to lay him on 
one side and remove his cloak, when he raised his head 
and looked at me. It was the gunsmith of our regiment. 
He said sadly : 

' Ah, sergeant, what misfortunes I have had ! I have 
lost everything — horses, carts — all I had ! I have only 
one mule left which I brought from Spain, and I have 
just been forced to leave him. I was carried across the 
bridge, but I nearly died.' 

I told him that he would be very fortunate, and ought 
to thank Heaven, if he got back to France alive. 

So many men now crowded round our fire that we 
were obliged to leave it and make another some little way 
back. The confusion and disorder went on increasing, 

203 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

and reached their full height when Marshal Victor was 
attacked by the Russians, and shells and bullets showered 
thickly upon us. To complete our misery, snow began 
to fall and a cold wind blew. This dreadful state of 
things lasted all day and through the next night, and all 
this time the Berezina became gradually filled with ice, 
dead bodies of men and horses, while the bridge got 
blocked up with carts full of wounded men, some of which 
rolled over the edge into the water. Between eight and 
nine o'clock that evening Marshal Victor began his re- 
treat. He and his men had to cross the bridge over a 
perfect mountain of corpses. On the night of the 28th- 
29th it was possible for all the unfortunate wretches on 
the opposite bank to get across, but, paralyzed by the 
cold, they stayed behind to warm themselves by the 
warmth of the burning waggons, which had been set on 
fire on purpose to make the men go across. 

I remained in the rear with seventeen men and a 
sergeant named Rossiere, led by one of the men, as he 
had become almost blind, and was shivering with fever.* 
I was sorry for him, and offered to lend him my bearskin 
to cover him, but so much snow had fallen during the 
night that it had saturated the cloak. The snow then 
melted with the heat of the fire and dried up again. 
When I took hold of the skin in the morning, it was as 
hard as iron and useless for wearing, and I had to leave it 
behind. Wishing, however, to make it useful to the last, 
I laid it over a dying man. We had passed a wretched 
night. Many of the men in the Imperial Guard had died. 
At about seven o'clock on the morning of the 2gth I went 

* I learned afterwards that the sergeant had the luck to return to 
France ; as he had plenty of money, he got a Jew to take him as far as 
Koenigsberg, but when he arrived in France he went mad and blew 
out his brains. — Author's Note. 

204 



THE CROSSING OF THE BEREZINA 

towards the bridge, hoping to find some more of our men. 
The unfortunate men who had not taken advantage of the 
night to get away had at the first appearance of dawn 
rushed on to the bridge, but now it was too late. Pre- 
parations were already made to burn it down. Numbers 
jumped into the water, hoping to swim through the float- 
ing bits of ice, but not one reached the shore. I saw 
them all there in water up to their shoulders, and, over- 
come by the terrible cold, they all miserably perished. 
On the bridge was a canteen man carrying a child on his 
head. His wife .was in front of him, crying bitterly. I 
could not sta}^ any longer, it was more than I could bear. 
Just as I turned away, a cart containing a wounded ofiicer 
fell from the bridge, with the horse also.* They next set 
fire to the bridge, and I have been told that scenes im- 
possible to describe for horror then took place. The 
details I had witnessed were merely slight sketches of the 
horrible picture that followed. 

I was now told that the regiment was moving. I made 
the men take up their arms, and counted them to the 
number of twenty-three, without the gunsmith. As the 
regiment moved off, each man joined his company. 

We were at last on the march ; it might be, perhaps, 
nine o'clock. We crossed a wooded piece of ground 
interspersed by marshes, which we traversed by means of 
bridges made of pine-wood, fortunately not burned by the 
Russians. We waited now and then for those in the 
rear to come up with us. The sun was shining, and I sat 
down on Gros-Jean's knapsack and went off to sleep ; but 

* Thus perished M. Legrand, the brother of Dr. Legrand, of Valen- 
ciennes. He had been wounded at Krasnoe, and had just got as far 
as the Berdzina. Just after the scene I have described, and while the 
Russians were firing at the bridge, I was told that he was badly wounded 
before being thrown into the water. — Author'' s Note. 

205 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

an officer, M. Favin, catching sight of me, pulled me by 
the ears and the hair, others kicked me from behind, all 
without waking me. Several of them got hold of me and 
forced me to rise, and well for me that they did, or I 
should have slept the sleep of death. I felt very cross, 
however, at being roused. 

Many who we thought had perished came on from 
the B6rezina. They embraced and congratulated each 
other as if it were the Rhine they had crossed, still 
400 leagues off. They felt so happy that they were sorry 
for those left behind. They advised me to walk a little in 
front, so that I should not fall asleep again. This advice 
I took. 



206 



CHAPTER IX. 

FROM "fHE BEREZINA TO WILNA THE JEWS. 

I HAD been walking in advance of the regiment for about 
half an hour, when I met a sergeant of the Fusiliers- 
Chasseurs whom I knew. He seemed very happy about 
something (a most unusual thing), so I asked him if he 
had anything to eat. 

' I have found some potatoes,' he said, ' in this village.' 
I raised my head and saw that we were actually in a 
village at that moment. Walking with my eyes fixed 
on the ground, I had not noticed it. When I heard the 
word ' potatoes ' I stopped him to ask in which house he 
had found them, and I ran there as fast as my legs would 
carry me. After much searching, I had the luck to find 
three httle potatoes under an oven, about the size of nuts. 
I half cooked them on an almost extinct fire I found a 
little distance off the road. When they were done enough, 
I ate them with a bit of horseflesh, but I hardly tasted 
them, as the fever I had on me for the last few days had 
destroyed my appetite entirely, and I was sure that if it 
continued I should soon be dead. 

When the regiment passed I took my place, and we 
marched as far as Ziemben, where the Emperor, with part 
of the Guard, had already arrived. We could see him 
gazing at the road to Borisow on our left, where we were 

207 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

told the Russians would come. Several of the horse- 
Guards were sent on in front, but no Russians were to be 
seen that day. The Emperor slept at Kamen with half 
the Guard, and we, the Fusiliers, Grenadiers, and 
Chasseurs, spent the night close by. 

On the 30th the Emperor and his suite slept at 
Plechnitzie. We bivouacked some distance off. We 
arrived there on the following day, and heard that Marshal 
Gudinot had only just escaped being made prisoner there; 
that 2,000 Russians, with two field-pieces, had entered 
the place, and that the Marshal, although wounded, 
had entrenched himself in a house with twenty-five men, 
both officers and privates, many of them wounded. The 
Russians, astounded at these preparations for defence with 
so small a number of men, had retired on to some heights 
overlooking the house, and laid siege to it till the arrival 
of the Emperor with the troop of the Rhine Confederation 
and part of the Guard. As we passed, we looked at the 
house, pierced through by balls in many places. It 
seemed strange to us how 2,000 Cossacks had not 
sufficient courage to take an old wooden house defended 
by only twenty-five men. 

On the next day, December ist, we left early in the 
morning, and after an hour's march we reached a village, 
where the Fusiliers-Chasseurs had spent the night. They 
were waiting to set out with us. I made inquiries if there 
was anything to buy there, and was told by a sergeant- 
major that there was some gin to be had from a Jew. 
He took me to the place, and seeing the Jew with a long 
beard, I asked him politely in German if he had any gin 
for sale. ' No,' he answered rudely, ' I have none ; the 
French have taken it all.' I said nothing, but I knew 
perfectly well he was telling a lie, and that he was only 
afraid of not being paid. 

208 



FROM THE BEREZINA TO \MLNA 

Just then a girl of fourteen or fifteen jumped down from 
a great stove she had been sitting on, and coming up to 
me, she said : ' If you will give me your silver lace, I will 
let you have a glass of brandy.' I said yes, so she took 
off the silver braid belonging to my haversack, worth 
thirty francs, which I had brought from Moscow. She 
hid it immediately in her dress, and gave me a miserable 
bit of cord instead. If I had allowed her, she would have 
taken the surgeon's pocket - case I had got from the 
Cossack, as she caught sight of the silver fittings. She 
then brought me' a glass of very bad gin, but I felt so 
sick I could hardly swallow it. She also gave me a small 
oval-shaped cheese, the size of a hen's egg, smelling of 
aniseed. I put it carefully in my haversack, and went out. 

I was hardly in the open air, when the abominable spirit 
flew to my head. I was obliged to cross a broad deep 
ditch on a tree throw^n over to serve as a bridge. I 
danced across this without falling, and rushed in the 
same way amongst my comrades. More than that, I 
took hold of their arms, singing and trying to make them 
dance. Several of them, even officers, gathered round 
me, asking me what was the matter. I only sang and 
danced the more. The sergeant-major of our company 
took me a little way apart, and asked me where I came 
from. I told him that I had had some drink. ' Where ?' 
' Come with me,' I said. He followed, and we crossed 
the tree, holding each other by the hand. On the other 
side a friend of mine took my arm. This was a sergeant- 
major named Leboude, a Liegeois. He had just heard 
what I had been doing. When we got to the Jew's house, 
I told them if they had any gold or silver lace they could 
get some gin. ' If that's all,' said the Liegeois, * here it 
is.' He had a very nice Astrakan cap, with a gold braid 
round it. The young Jewess took matters into her own 

209 p 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

hands again, and ripped off the braid. They gave us 
some gin, and we came away; but we were hardly out 
of the house, when the same kind of frenzy came over me, 
worse than before. It took hold of the Liegeois also, and 
he and I danced together. The sergeant-major looked at 
us, telling us to march back and rejoin our regiment. 
Instead of answering, we each took one of his arms, and 
danced towards the tree over the ditch. There the 
Liegeois slipped and fell, dragging the sergeant-major 
into the ditch, and me also. Under the snow in the 
ditch were more than two hundred dead bodies, thrown 
there during the last two days. At this sudden collapse 
the sergeant-major shrieked with rage and terror, swear- 
ing loudly at us. We were none of us hurt, however, and 
the Liegeois began to sing and dance afresh. 

We had not the strength to get out again. Ice was 
everywhere under the snow, and when we got away from 
the dead bodies, it was too slippery to walk. If a company 
of Westphalians had not passed at that moment, there 
we should have stayed. They threw us ropes at first, but 
our hands were too much frozen to hold them. At last 
they put down the side of a cart, making a kind of ladder, 
and they helped us to mount by it. The fall had sobered 
the Liegeois and me a little. We rejoined the regiment, 
which had halted near a wood, and resumed our march. 
A mile farther on we met Prince Eugene, the vice- King of 
Italy, at the head of a small number of officers and a few 
Grenadiers of the Royal Guard, grouped round their 
colours. They were completely exhausted with fatigue. 
We made a good distance on that day, leaving a great many 
far behind. We found a deserted village, where we slept, 
and plenty of straw to lie down in. Horseflesh we had 
in abundance, but no saucepans to stew it or make soup 
in. We were therefore obliged, as on the preceding 



FROM THE BEREZINA TO WILNA 

days, to eat some of the meat roasted ; but at least we 
could sleep under shelter and make fires. During the 
night I was obliged to go out into the air several times, as 
I was quite unaccustomed to the heat of the houses. 

On the next day we started earl}- ; this was December 2nd. 
My fever came on again, and my legs almost gave way 
under me, so that after an hour's march I found myself 
behind the others. I went through a small village filled 
with stragglers, but I passed through without stopping. 
A little further on I saw large numbers of men gathered 
outside some houses busy roasting horseflesh. General 
Maison passed by and stopped, telling everyone to follow 
him if they wished to escape the Russian cavalry, now 
not far off. Most of the men, however, were too much 
famished and too demoralized to listen ; they would not 
leave their fires till they had eaten, and many of them 
were prepared to defend the piece of meat they held 
against the enemy. I went on my way. Further on I 
met several men of my company, and begged them not to 
leave me ; they promised me they would follow me any- 
where — that they were quite indifferent where they went. 
In the evening we stopped near a wood for the night. 
Already several men from different corps were there, 
especially of the Italian army, and a few Grenadiers of the 
1st regiment of the Guard, of whom I asked nev/s of Picart. 
They said they had seen him the day before, but that he 
seemed quite mad, and they thought his brain was affected. 

I had never till now thought of looking in poor Gros- 
Jean's knapsack, which he had given me at the Berezina 
bridge. Now, as I felt certain he could not return, I 
opened it before two men of our company who were with 
me, and were, moreover, in his squadron. I found nothing 
of any importance, except a handkerchief containing oat- 
meal mixed with rye. One of the men happening to have 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

a saucepan lid, we cooked the meal. I also found an old 
pair of shoes, but there was not a shirt, of which I was in 
great need ; the rest was quite useless to me. 

There was, fortunately, a great deal of wood about, so 
we made a large fire. The cold was endurable while the 
night lasted, but in the morning (the 3rd) a north wind 
got up, bringing with it twenty degrees of frost. We were 
forced to begin our march, as it was impossible to remain 
still. We started after eating some horseflesh, just follow- 
ing in the steps of those who walked before us, who knew 
no more than we did where they were, or in what direction 
they were going. The sun shone brilliantly, and the cold 
decreased a little ; so we made good progress, stopping 
every now and then at houses with deserted bivouac fires. 
As far as I can remember, we slept in a posting-station. 

The sun which we had enjoyed the day before was the 
forerunner of a terrible frost. I cannot write of this day, 
for I truly do not know how I got through it. When my 
comrades spoke to me, I answered as if I were mad. The 
cold was intolerable. Many took the first road they came 
to, in the hope of finding houses of some kind as shelter. 
We lost our way at last in following some Poles, who were 
going to Varsovia. One of them who spoke French assured 
me that we were more than a league from the road to 
Wilna. We tried to retrace our steps, and we lost our- 
selves again. We met three officers, followed by more 
than a hundred unfortunate men from different corps and 
of different nations, half dead with cold and want. When 
they heard from us that they were lost, many of them 
cried like children. 

We were now near a pine- wood, so we decided to bivouac 
there with the men we had met. They had a horse, which 
we killed and divided amongst us. Two fires were made, 
and everyone cooked his meat at the point of his sword 



FROM THE BEREZINA TO WILNA 

or a stick. When we had finished our meal, we gathered 
round the fires, and arranged that a quarter of the number 
should keep watch, as we feared we might be taken by the 
Russians, who were following the army on both sides of 
the road. An hour later the snow began to fall, and a 
high wind got up, driving us under the shelters we had 
made. The wind grew furious, driving the snow into the 
shelters, and entirely preventing us from sleeping, though 
we wanted it badly enough. I slept, however, seated on 
my knapsack, with my fur-lined collar on my head to keep 
off the snow. How many times during this miserable 
night I longed for my bearskin coat ! 

I did not sleep long, as a violent gust of wind carried 
away the shelter. I and my two men were forced to walk 
about to keep ourselves from freezing. When the dawn 
came at last, we set out on our march, leaving seven men 
behind in the bivouac, three of whom were already dead, 
and four unconscious. 

At about eight o'clock we reached the high road, and 
after countless difficulties we arrived at Molodetschno at 
three in the afternoon, amid a rabble of men of all corps, 
especially of the army of Italy. The Emperor had slept 
here. We tried to find shelter for the night in some barn 
or stable, but found we were too late. We had to be 
content with a half-burnt house with no roof, and three- 
quarters filled with men already; but we considered our- 
selves lucky in getting any kind of shelter against the 
fearful cold, which went on increasing until we got to 
Wilna. 

I heard later that it was from this place that the 
Emperor despa«tched his twenty -ninth bulletin, which 
caused such a sensation in France, announcing the destruc- 
tion of our army. It was broad daylight when we started 
on the 5th. Mechanically we followed 10,000 men in front 

213 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

of us, marching in confusion, without knowing where they 
went. We crossed several marshes, where we should have 
all probably sunk and perished, but for the severe frost. 
Those who lagged behind were in no danger of losing their 
way, for the numbers of fallen men on the road served as 
guides. We arrived the next day at Brenitza. The Emperor 
had slept there, and had already left. This day we were 
more fortunate. I was able to buy a little flour, and we 
made some hasty-pudding ; but we had not the luck to 
find a roofless house again, and were obliged to spend the 
night in the street. It was so bitterly cold that we got 
no sleep. The next morning we set off for Smorgony. 
The road was full of officers of different corps, and the 
remnants of the Doomed Squadron and Battalion, wrapped 
in worn-out furs, and half-burnt garments. Some had not 
even these, having, no doubt, parted with them for their 
friends. Many of them walked leaning on sticks, their 
beards a^d hair a mass of ice ; others, no longer able to 
walk, looked vainly at the miserable men passing along 
the road, trying to find some part of the regiments they 
had commanded a fortnight before, and get help or an 
arm to lean on. It was all over, I fear, with those who 
could not walk. 

The roads were like battlefields, there were so many 
dead bodies; but as the snow fell all the time, the horror 
of the sight was softened. We had lost all sense of pity, 
besides ; we were insensible even to our own sufferings, let 
alone those of others. The men who fell imploring help 
were not listened to. Thus we arrived at Smorgony, 
on the 6th. On entering the town, we heard that the 
Emperor had left the evening before, at ten o'clock, for 
France, leaving the command of the army to King Murat. 
Many of the foreigners took advantage of this circum- 
stance to blame the Emperor, but the step he took was 

214 



FROM THE BEREZINA TO \VILNA 

a perfectly natural one, as, owing to Malet's conspiracy, 
his presence was necessary in France, not only for the 
administration, but to organize a new army. Amongst 
the numbers of dying men constantly arriving were others 
who were well dressed and vigorous, evidently foreigners, 
and these all exclaimed loudly at the Emperor's conduct. 
I have often thought since that these men were agents 
from England, come to create disaffection in the army. 

In the crowd I lost one of the men who had been with 
me, but I had no time to look for him, I was so afraid of 
losing shelter for the night. Seeing an officer from Baden, 
who belonged to the garrison of the town, I followed him 
with my other man. He went to a Jew's house where 
he was quartered, and, seeing us after him, made no objec- 
tion to our entrance. We sat down near a warm stove. 
One must go through the misery and suffering we had 
experienced to understand the delight of being in a warm 
house and having the prospect of a good night. 

In the same room there was a young officer on the staff, 
ill with fever and lying on a wretched sofa. He told me 
that he had been ill ever since Orcha, and as he could go 
no farther, there was probably an end of him, as he would 
certainly be taken by the Russians. ' God knows,' he said, 
' what will come of it, and what my poor mother will say 
when she learns !' 

The Baden officer, who could speak French, tried to 
comfort him by saying that he would get him a horse for 
his sledge, as his own was dead. He promised soup and 
meat to us, but during the night he left with the rest 
of the garrison. The poor officer grew worse, and was 
delirious all night, and as for us, we got neither soup nor 
meat. We had only a few onions and some nuts the Jew 
had sold us, dearly enough, but the shelter was well worth 
the money. 

215 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

After our rest we set out early on the 7th, as quietly 
as possible, so that the young officer might not hear 
us, as we could not possibly do anything for him. 
There were very few people on the road, and after a time 
we rested near a ruined barn. After half an hour, the 
column of the Imperial Guard came in sight; the fragment 
of our regiment was there, marching in as much order as 
possible. I joined their ranks. When we halted, they 
asked me, in an indifferent way, if I had found any food 
during the four days I had been away. When I told 
them I had nothing, they turned their backs to me, 
cursing and banging the butts of their muskets on the 
ground. 

We continued our march, and got to Joupranoui very 
late ; almost all the houses here were burnt, and the rest 
deserted, without roofs or doors. We huddled together 
as best we could, and as there was plenty of horseflesh, I 
cooked some ready for the next day. 

On the 8th it was late when we started, but the cold 
was so intense that the men set fire to the houses to warm 
themselves. All the houses contained unfortunate soldiers, 
many of whom had not the strength to save themselves, 
and perished in the flames. 

In the middle of the day we got to a small town the 
name of which I have forgotten. They told us that dis- 
tributions of rations were to be made here, but we soon 
heard that the shops had been pillaged before our arrival, 
and that the people who had charge of the distributions 
had got away, and the commissaries also. We continued 
our route, therefore, striding over the dead and dying on 
our way. When we halted near a wood, one of the men 
of our company caught sight of a horse, and we gathered 
round to kill him, and each take some of the flesh ; but as 
we had no knives or hatchets to cut it, we killed it for the 

216 



FROM THE BEREZINA TO WTLNA 

sake of the blood, which we collected in a saucepan taken 
from a German cantiniere. Finding a deserted bivouac 
fire, we began to cook the blood, putting some powder in 
it for seasoning, but it was only half done when we caught 
sight of a legion of Cossacks. We had just time to eat it 
as it was, and this we had to do from our hands, so that 
our faces and clothes were covered with blood. We were 
ghastly objects to look at. 

This halt, caused by some difficulty with the artillery, 
had gathered together more than 30,000 men of all 
nations, making a spectacle impossible to describe. We 
started off again, and reached a large village three or 
four leagues from Wilna. I recognised the village for the 
same we had stayed at five months before, in going from 
Wilna to Moscow. Here I had lost a trophy, that is to 
say, a little box containing rings, hair necklaces, and 
portraits of the mistresses I had had in all the countries I 
had visited. I was much grieved at losing my collec- 
tion. On the gth we left Wilna, in twenty-eight degrees 
of frost.* Scarcely 2,000 arrived at Wilna, out of 
two divisions of more than 10,000. These, both French 
and NeapoHtans, had joined us during the last two days. 
This enormous number was lost during this terrible 
journey. The men were well clothed, and wanted for 
nothing but food. They had lei"t good quarters in Lithuania 
and Pomerania only a few days before. When they came 
they were filled with pity for our condition, but in two 
days they were worse off than we. They were less 
demoralized, and at first they tried to help each other; but 
when they saw what deprivation this meant, they grew as 
selfish as all the others, officers and privates alike. 

I had plucked up a little courage in the hope of soon 
getting to Wilna, where we should have abundant food. 

* Many people said thirty or thirty-two degrees. — Author's Note. 

217 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

I should call the efforts we made superhuman. This 
terrible cold was more than I had ever felt before. I 
was almost fainting, and we seemed to walk through an 
atmosphere of ice. How often in the dreadful time did I 
long for my bearskin cloak, which had saved me so often 
in cold like this ! I could hardly breathe : my nose felt 
frozen ; my lips were glued together ; my eyes streamed, 
dazzled by the snow. I was forced to stop and cover my 
face with my fur collar to melt the ice. In this style I got 
to a barn where there was a fire burning, and where one 
could breathe a little. In all the buildings we passed were 
unfortunate men not able to get any further, and waiting 
there to die. 

Now we could see the spires and roofs of Wilna. I 
tried to hurry on to get there amongst the first, but the 
old Chasseurs of the Guard prevented me. They blocked 
up the road in such a manner that no one could pass them 
without marching in order. These veterans, with ice 
hanging to their beards and moustaches, marched on, 
controlling their own sufferings to keep order in the ranks ; 
bu.t this order it was impossible to maintain. Once in the 
outskirts of the town, everything was in confusion. At 
the door of a house I saw one of my old friends of the 
Grenadiers lying dead. They had arrived an hour before 
us. A house was chosen for our battalion, and a distribu- 
tion of beef was made. We had not the sense to put it all 
together and make soup. We each fell on our allowance 
like wild beasts, every man cooking or warming it as he 
could, and some even devouring it raw. One of my friends 
named Poton, who was a Breton gentleman, and a sergeant 
in my company, waited impatiently for his piece, about 
half a pound. As he was a short distance off, it was 
thrown to him. He caught it with both hands, like a cat, 
and began eating it convulsively, in spite of everything we 

218 



FROM THE BEREZINA TO WILNA 

could do to prevent him. He was incapable of seeing any- 
thing but the meat before him. 

Soon afterwards I went into the town to see if I could 
not buy some bread and a little brandy. But the doors 
were almost all shut and bolted. The inhabitants, 
although our friends, had taken fright on seeing fifty or 
sixty thousand famished men, most of whom looked 
imbecile or mad. Many of our men had rushed about 
like lunatics, knocking at all the doors and shops, but 
had been refused, as the contractors wished to do every- 
thing in order. This was impossible, as order did not 
exist. 

I soon saw that I could not get what I wanted, and was 
about to go back to my quarters, when I heard my name 
called. I turned round, and to my great surprise saw 
Picart, who threw himself on my neck, crying with joy. 
He had come across the regiment twice since we passed 
the Berezina, but they had assured him that I was dead 
or taken prisoner. He said he had some flour, which I 
should share with him ; and as for brandy, he would 
take me to his Jew, who would furnish me with that, 
and perhaps bread as well. I begged him to take me 
there while we were waiting for the distribution of 
rations. This we were sure to have later, as the shops 
were full. 

I shall never forget the curious effect an inhabited house 
had on me. It seemed to me years since I had seen one. 
Picart gave me a little brandy, which I had great difficulty 
in swallowing. I then bought a bottle for twenty francs, 
which I carefully stowed away in my haversack. As to 
bread, I must wait for that till evening. For fifty days I 
had not tasted any, and it seemed that if only I could eat a 
little I should forget all my miseries. The Jew told me 
that the men who had arrived first in the morning had 

219 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

devoured everything. He advised us not to leave his 
house, even to sleep there, and that he would undertake to 
get us everything we wanted, also to prevent others from 
coming in. Taking his advice, I settled down to rest on 
a bench near the stove. 

I asked Picart how it happeried that he was on such 
friendly terms with the Jew, as I noticed they treated him 
as a member of the family. He said that he had passed 
himself off as the son of a Jewess, and that during the 
fortnight we had spent in the town in July he had attended 
their synagogue with them, and in consequence of this he 
had always got some schnapps to drink and some nuts to 
crack. 

I had not laughed for long enough, but I burst out into 
a roar at this, until the blood poured down my lips, 
Picart went on with his funny stories, until suddenly we 
heard a rattle of artillery, and our host came hurriedly 
in. He looked dazed, and could not speak. At last he 
said that he had seen some Bavarian soldiers, followed 
by Cossacks, enter by the same gate at which we had 
come in. 

The garrison of the town just then sounded the call. 
When Picart heard it, he seized his arms and came up to 
where I sat, unwilling to move. 

* Come, mon pays,' he said, striking me on the shoulder ; 
'we belong to the Imperial Guard, and should be the first 
to go. We must not let these savages eat our bread. It 
you have strength, follow me, and we'll join with fellows 
who'll turn out these rascals.' 

I followed Picart. A few men ran to join they hardly 
knew what, but a great number walked off as far as they 
could get, and the most part, quite indifferent to every- 
thing, paid no attention to what was going on. 

When we got near the gate leading to the faubourg, 



FROM THE BEREZINA TO WILNA 

we met a detachment of Grenadiers and Chasseurs of the 
Guard. Picart left me to take his proper place, and as 
I saw a few of our men following, and also some officers, 
I followed also, without knowing who commanded us or 
where we were going. We went up a mountain without 
any pretence of order, each one going as he could ; many 
fell and remained behind. We had climbed, perhaps, two- 
thirds of the height — and I was astonished at having got 
so far — when I fell;, and although helped up by a Lithuanian 
peasant, I could hardly rise. I begged the man not to 
leave me, and to secure his services I gave him about 
four francs in Russian money and some brandy in the 
little cup I still kept. The peasant was so delighted that 
I believe he would have carried me on his back. We 
went on over ground covered with dead men and horses. 
There were a great many firearms lying about. My 
peasant picked up a carbine and some cartridges, saying 
that he wished to fight the Russians himself. After great 
difficulty we at last reached the top of the mountain, 
where the Prussians were already fighting. Two hundred 
men, three-parts belonging to the Guard, were facing the 
enemy, consisting of cavalry, many of whom were scouts. 
As the Bavarians had in retreating left some men behind 
them, with two pieces of artillery, two discharges of grape- 
shot were sufficient to disperse them. As the position 
was untenable on account of the cold, we faced about to 
return to the town, where the greatest disorder prevailed. 
The garrison, almost entirely composed of foreigners, was 
in a state of panic. Some were preparing to leave the 
town, loading carts, sledges, and horses. On all sides we 
heard cries of ' Who has seen my horse ?' ' Where has my 
cart got to ?' ' Stop the man who is off with my sledge.' 
This disorder was mainly caused by the thieves who had 
followed us all through the retreat, and of whom I have 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

spoken before. Now, seeing a good opportunity, they 
took advantage of it by seizing carts, horses, and sledges 
loaded with provisions, gold, and silver. The arrange- 
ments for departure were made by the commissariat, 
contractors, and other army employes, who now were 
making common cause with us. The thieves thus fled 
along the Kowno road, sure of not being pursued. 

On entering the faubourg, I avoided the house where 
our battalion was quartered. I had two reasons for going 
into the town : firstly, for the bread I was to share with 
Picart ; secondly, to let him know that I had taken part in 
the little expedition which had beaten the Russians. I 
ran to the right to find Picart, but to my surprise I was 
told that he had taken the first turning to the left, with 
ten other Grenadiers and Chasseurs, to be on guard for 
Murat. Murat had just left the town for the faubourg on 
the Kowno road. 

I decided to look for him at Murat's quarters. On the 
way I passed the house where Marshal Ney was staying. 
Several Grenadiers of the line were before the door, warm- 
ing themselves by a large fire, which gave me a terrible 
longing to be there, too. Seeing how wretched I looked, 
they made room for me. Many of them were quite strong 
and well dressed. When I showed my surprise at their 
appearance, they said they had not been as far as Moscow ; 
they had been wounded at the siege of Smolensk, and left 
at Wilna, where they had remained ever since. Now they 
were well again and fit for fighting. I asked them if they 
could get me some bread. They answered as the Jew 
had done — that if I would return that evening, or stay 
with them, they were certain that I should have some. 
But, as I was obliged to go back to the battalion, I told 
the Grenadiers that I would return, and that I would 
give five francs for each loaf. Before leaving them, they 



FROM THE BEREZINA TO WILNA 

told me that just before I arrived a German General had 
come to the Marshal, and had advised him to leave if he 
did not wish to be surprised by the Russians ; but the 
Marshal had replied, pointing to a hundred Grenadiers 
warming themselves in the courtj^ard, that with those he 
could afford to laugh at all the Cossacks in Russia, and 
that he would sleep in the town. 

I asked how many there were in the Marshal's body- 
guard. 

'About sixty,' answered a drummer sitting on his drum; 
' and another sixty we found here well and fit. I have 
been with the Marshal ever since the crossing of the 
Dnieper, and with him at our back we can manage those 
dogs of Cossacks. Coquin de Dien /' he said, ' if it were 
not so cold, and if I hadn't frozen hands, I would sound 
the attack myself all day to-morrow.' 

I returned to the faubourg, and found all my comrades 
asleep on the floor. There was a large fire, and the room 
was warm, and as I was completely worn out, I lay down 
with them. 

It might be perhaps two o'clock in the morning when I 
awoke, and as I had now missed the rendezvous I had 
given the Marshal's Grenadiers, I told my comrades that 
I was going to the town to get some bread, and that now 
was a favourable time, as all the soldiers would be asleep ; 
and, besides, I had some Russian bank-notes. Several of 
them tried to get up and go with me, but could not do so. 
Only one, Bailly, a sergeant, succeeded in rising, and the 
others gave us their money, amountino- to about fifty 
francs. 

It was a beautiful moonlight night, but when we were 
in the street it felt so bitterly cold that it would not have 
taken much to send us back into the house. 

We met no one in the faubourg. At the gates of the 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

town there was no sentry. The Russians could have got 
in as easily as we did. When we were opposite the first 
house on the left, I caught sight of a light through the 
entrance to the cellar, and, stooping down, I saw it was 
a bakehouse, and that bread was being made. The smell 
had made us aware of it before. My comrade knocked, 
and they asked us what we wanted. We answered : 
' Open the door ! We are Generals !' They opened at 
once, and we went in. They took us into a large room, 
where a number of officers were lying on the floor. They 
did not trouble to ask us if we were really what we pre- 
tended to be. For some time past it had been hardly 
possible to distinguish an officer from a private. 

A very fat woman was standing against the cellar door, 
so we asked her if she had any bread to sell. She said 
no, it was not baked yet ; we might go down to the cellar 
and see for ourselves. An officer lying on some straw, 
wrapped in a great cloak, got up and went down with us. 
Two bakers were there fast asleep, and looking all round, 
we could see nothing; and we began to think that the 
woman had spoken the truth, when on stooping down I 
saw under a kneading-trough a large basket, which I drew 
out. In it we found seven large loaves of white bread, 
weighing three or four pounds each, as good as those 
made in Paris. What luck ! What a glorious find for 
men who had had no bread for fifty days! I began by 
taking possession of two, which I put under my arm and 
my cape. My comrade did the same, and the officer took 
the three others. This officer was Fouche, a Grenadier- 
Velite, then an Adjutant-Major in a regiment of the Young 
Guard, and a Major-General. We came out of the cellar, 
and found the woman still standing at the door. We 
said that we would return in the morning when the bread 
was baked, and she was so anxious to get rid of us that 



THE JEWS 

she opened the door, and we found ourselves in the 
street.* 

As soon as ever we were free, we dropped our muskets 
into the snow, and began to bite into the loaves voraciously; 
but, as my lips were cracked and bleeding, I could not open 
my mouth as comfortably as I wished. Just then two men 
came up to us, asking if we had nothing to sell or exchange, 
and we saw that they were Jews. I told them that we had 
Russian bank-notes for a hundred roubles each, and asked 
how much they would give. 

' Fifty,' said the first in German. ' Fifty-five,' said the 
other. ' Sixty,' went on the first. 

He ended by offering us seventy-seven, and I made the 
condition that they should give us some cafe-au-lait. They 
consented. The second then came behind me and said, 
' Eighty !' But the price was concluded, and, as the man 
had promised us coffee, we did not wish to bargain over 
again for twenty francs at most. 

The Jew now conducted us to a banker, as he was only 
an agent. The banker was also a Jew. He asked us at 
once for our notes, of which we had to give nine ; three 
of them belonged to me. He looked very closely at them, 
and passed into another room, while we sat down on a 
bench to wait, furtively handling our bread. 

Our longing for the coffee promised us overcame our 
patience, and we called out for the banker. No one 
appeared. The idea suddenly came to us that we were 
going to be robbed. I said as much to my comrade, who 
thought so too. To compel attention, therefore, he struck 
their counter as hard as he could with the butt of his 

* Since then I have seen General Fouche, and, on my reminding him 
of this episode at Wilna, he told me that, after going out, he was nearly 
assassinated by the people of the house, who tried to make him pay 
for what we had taken. — Author's Note. 

225 Q 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

musket. As no one came to this summons either, he 
knocked against a wooden partition dividing the two 
rooms. The Jews came out, looking as if they were 
plotting something together. After again asking for our 
money, we were told to wait ; but my comrade loaded his 
musket before their eyes, and I took one of them by the 
throat, demanding our notes. When they were convinced 
that we should make a scene to their disadvantage, they 
hastily counted out our money, the most part of it in 
gold. We took hold of the man who had led us to the 
place, and forced him to leave with us; but as soon as 
we were in the street he swore that what had occurred 
was no fault of his. We thought it better to believe him 
in view of the coffee he had promised us, and he took us 
to his house. 

After our meal, my comrade wished to go back to the 
faubourg ; but I felt so tired, and even ill, that I decided 
to stay where I was till the next day, thinking myself safe 
with two Bavarian cavalrymen. So I lay down on a 
sofa — perhaps it might be five o'clock in the morning. 

I had only been resting about half an hour, when I 
was seized with the most violent colic, after which I was 
terribly sick, and continued so ill that I felt sure the Jew 
had poisoned me. I thought I must die, as I was so weak 
as to be unable to get to the bottle of brandy in my knap- 
sack. I begged one of the Bavarians to give me some, 
and after that I felt better ; so I lay down again on the 
sofa and dozed off. I do not know how long I slept, but 
when I awoke I discovered that my bread had gone. Only 
a very small piece was left, which, fortunately, I had put 
in my haversack, along with the bottle of brandy, and 
hung at my side. My Rabbi's cap had also disappeared^ 
so, too, had the Bavarians. That, however, was not what 
distressed me the most, but my own position, which was 

226 



THE JEWS 

a dreadful one ; besides my colic and sickness, my right 
foot was frozen, and my wound had reopened. The first 
joint on the middle finger of my right hand was on the 
point of dropping oif, and the terrible cold of the preceding 
day had poisoned my foot to such a degree that I could 
not get my boot on. I was forced to wrap it up in rags, 
after rubbing it over with the grease the Poles had given 
me, and a piece of sheepskin over all, which I tied on 
with string. The same process I repeated with my right 
hand. 

I was about to go out, when the Jew asked me to stay, 
saying that he had some rice to sell. I bought some, 
thinking it would stop my complaint. I begged him to 
get me some sort of pot to cook it in, and he fetched me 
a little copper pan ; I tied this and my boot to the knapsack, 
and after giving the man ten francs I went out. 

As soon as I was in the street, I heard despairing cries, 
and I saw a woman weeping over a dead body at the door 
of a house. She stopped me, asking me to help her to get 
back what had been taken from her. 

' I have been staying in this house since yesterday,' she 
said, ' with these scoundrels of Jews. My husband was 
very ill. During the night they took everything we had, 
and this morning I went out to get help. As I saw I 
should get none anywhere, I came back to nurse my poor 
husband ; but when I arrived, imagine my horror at seeing 
his corpse at the door ! The villains had taken advantage 
of my absence to assassinate him. Oh, mons-ieur,' she 
went on, ' do not leave me ! Come with me !' 

I said that was impossible, but the best thing she could 
do now was to join those who were leaving the town. 
She made a gesture with her hand to say she could not 
do it ; and, as I had heard several musket-shots, I had 
to leave the unfortunate woman and go in the direction 

227 Q — 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

of Kowno. I got into a crowd of 10,000 men, women, 
and children all hurrying and thrusting past each other to 
get out first. 

As chance would have it, I met a Captain of the Young 
Guard belonging to my own part of the country.* He 
had with him his Lieutenant, his servant, and a wretched 
horse. The Captain had no company left ; his regiment 
had ceased to exist. I told him all my misfortunes, and 
he gave me a little tea and a piece of sugar, but directly 
afterwards a vast number of people coming after us 
separated us. 

A drummer was beating the retreat at the head of the 
first crowd, very likely a detachment of the garrison I had 
not seen. We marched on for half an hour, and arrived 
at the end of the faubourg ; then we could breathe a 
little, and each one walk as he would. When I got out- 
side the town, I could not help thinking of the state of 
our army : five months before it entered the Lithuanian 
capital, proud and rejoicing ; now it went out, fugitive 
and miserable. 

* M. Ddbonnez, from Conde, killed at Waterloo. — Author's Note. 



228 



CHAPTER X. 

FROM WILNA TO KOWNO — THE REGIMENTAL DOG — MARSHAL 

NEY THE TREASURY OF THE ARMY I AM POISONED 

THE thieves' dripping THE OLD GRENADIER, FALOPPA 

GENERAL ROGUET FROM KOWNO TO ELBING — TWO CANTI- 

NI^RES THE ADVENTURES OF A SERGEANT 1 FIND PICART 

AGAIN THE SLEDGE AND THE JEWS A SHREW EYLAU 

ARRIVAL AT ELBING. 

We were only a quarter of a league from the town, when 
we saw the Cossacks to our left upon the heights, and to 
our right on the plain ; however, they did not dare venture 
within reach of us. After having marched for some time, 
I found the horse of an officer of artillery stretched on 
the ground ; it had a schabraque of sheepskin on its back. 
This was just what I wanted to cover my poor ears, for it 
would have been impossible for me to go any distance 
without risking the loss of them. I had in my haversack 
the scissors belonging to the surgeon's case found on the 
Cossack I had killed on November 23rd. I tried to set to 
work to cut some of it away, and make what we called 
ear-lappets to replace the Rabbi's cap ; but having my 
right hand frozen, and the other benumbed, I could not 
manage it. I was in despair, when a man belonging to 
the garrison of Wilna came up. He was stronger than I, 
and succeeded in cutting the band fastening the schabraque 
to the horse ; then he gave me half of it. Until I could 

329 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

arrange it better, I put it over my head and continued my 
way. 

I now heard cannon, and then musketry fire ; it was 
the rear-guard leaving the town, with Marshal Ney in 
command, engaging the Russians. Those who were 
no longer able to fight ran as fast as they possibly 
could. I tried to follow them, but my frozen foot and 
bad boots prevented me ; then the colic, which came on 
repeatedly, and forced me to stop, hindered me, and I 
found myself always in the rear. I heard a confused 
sound behind me, and I was hustled by several men of 
the Rhine Confederation running off as fast as they could. 
I fell full length in the snow, and immediately several 
others passed over my body. I raised myself with great 
difficulty, for I was in great pain ; but I was so accustomed 
to suffering, I said nothing. The rear-guard was not far 
off — if it passed me I was lost ; but the Marshal called a 
halt, to give the other men still leaving the town time to 
join us. To hold the enemy in check, the Marshal had 
with him about 300 men. 

In front of me was a man whom I recognised by his 
cloak as belonging to the regiment. He was walking very 
much bent, apparently overwhelmed by the weight of a 
burden he was carrying upon his knapsack and shoulders. 
Making an effort to get near him, I saw that the burden 
was a dog, and that the man was an old sergeant named 
Daubenton.* The dog he carried was the regimental dog, 
though I did not recognise it. I told him how surprised 
I was at seeing him carrying the dog, when he had trouble 
to drag himself along ; and, without giving him the time 
to reply, I asked him if the dog was to eat — if so, I should 
prefer the horse. 

* This Sergeant Daubenton was a veteran who had been through 
the Italian campaigns. — Author's Note. 

230 



THE REGIMENTAL DOG 

* No,' he answered ; ' I would rather eat Cossack. But 
don't you recognise Mouton ? His paws are frozen, and 
now he can't walk any longer.' 

* Now I do,' I said ; ' but what can you do with him ?' 
As we walked, Mouton, whose back I had patted with 

my bandaged right hand, raised his head to look at me, 
and seemed to recognise me. Daubenton assured me that 
from seven in the morning, and even before, the Russians 
had occupied the first houses of the suburb where we had 
lodged, that all that remained of the Guard had left it at 
six, and that it was certain that more than 12,000 men of 
the army, officers and soldiers who were no longer able to 
march, had remained in the hands of the enemy. He had 
just missed submitting to the same fate himself through 
devotion to his dog. He saw very well that he would be 
obliged to leave him on the way in the snow. The evening 
of the day when we had arrived at Wilna — at twenty-eight 
degrees — the poor dog had had his paws frozen, and this 
morning, seeing that he could walk no longer, he had 
made up his mind to leave him ; but poor Mouton got an 
idea that he was to be deserted, for he began to howl in 
such a way that in the end he decided to let him follow. 
But hardl}^ had he taken six steps along the street when 
he saw his unfortunate dog fall upon his nose ; so he 
fastened him across his shoulders over his knapsack, and 
it was in this fashion that he had rejoined Marshal Ney, 
who with a handful of men formed the rear-guard. 

Whilst still marching, we found ourselves stopped by 
an overturned waggon barring part of the way ; it was 
open, and contained canvas bags, but all these were 
empty. This waggon had probably left Wilna the pre- 
ceding evening or in the morning, and had been pillaged 
by the way, for it had been laden with biscuits and flour. 
I proposed to Daubenton to halt a moment, for my colic 

231 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

had come on again ; he consented willingly, especially as 
he wished to rid himself of Mouton in one way or another. 

We had hardly stopped, when we saw at the back of a 
ravine a troop of about thirty young Hessians who had 
formed part of the garrison of Wilna, and had left there 
at daybreak. They were waiting for Marshal Ney, about 
thirty paces away from us, and ahead of us to the right. 
At the same moment we saw on our left another troop 
of horsemen, about twenty in number. We recognised 
them at once for Russians ; they were Cuirassiers in 
black cuirasses over white coats, accompanied by several 
Cossacks scattered here and there. They moved on so as 
to cut off the Hessians and ourselves, and a vast number 
of other unfortunate men who had just caught sight of 
them, and who turned back to rejoin the rear-guard, crying 
out, * Beware of the Cossacks !' 

The Hessians, under command of two officers who had 
probably caught sight of the Russians before we did, put 
themselves in order of defence. 

At this moment we saw a Grenadier of the line pass 
near to us, running to take rank among the Hessians ; we 
prepared to do the same, but Daubenton, hampered by 
Mouton, wished to put him in the waggon. We had 
not time, however, for the cavalry came at a gallop along- 
side the Hessians. There they halted, signing to them to 
lay down their arms. A musket-shot was the reply ; it 
was that of the French Grenadier, followed by a general 
discharge from the Hessians. 

At this report, we expected to see half the troopers fall, 
but, to our astonishment, not one did so, and the officer 
who was in advance, and who ought to have been shot in 
pieces, seemed to be whole and sound. His horse simply 
leapt to one side. He turned round again instantly towards 
his men ; they all thundered upon the Hessians, and in less 

232 



THE REGIMENTAL DOG 

than two minutes they were sabred. Several took to flight, 
but the cavalry pursued them. 

At the same time Daubenton, wishing to rid himself of 
Mouton, called out to me to help him, but three of the 
men in pursuit of the Hessians passed close by him. So 
as to defend himself better, Daubenton thought of retiring 
under the waggon, where I had taken refuge, suffering 
terribly from colic and cold ; but he had not time, for one 
of the three horsemen was on the point of charging him. 
Daubenton was fortunate enough to see the man in time, 
and get ready for him, but not so well as he could wish, 
for Mouton, barking like a good dog, hampered him in his 
movements. Meanwhile, although nearly dying of cold, I 
felt rather better, and had arranged my right hand to make 
use of my weapon the best way possible, having hardly any 
strength left, to speak of. 

The man wheeled continually round Daubenton, but at 
a certain distance, fearing a musket-shot. Seeing that 
neither of us attempted to fire, he no doubt thought that 
we were without powder, for he advanced upon Daubenton 
and hit him a blow with his sword, which the latter 
parried with the barrel of his musket. Instantly the man 
crossed to the right, and gave him a second blow upon the 
left shoulder, which struck Mouton on the head. The 
poor dog howled enough to break one's heart. Although 
wounded and with frozen paws, he leapt off his master's 
back to run after the man ; but being fastened to the 
straps of the knapsack, he pulled Daubenton down, and 
I thought all was over with him. 

I dragged myself on my knees about two steps ahead 
and took aim, but the priming of my gun did not burn. 
Then the man, shouting savagely, threw himself on me, 
but I had had time to get under the waggon and present 
my bayonet at him. 

233 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

Seeing that he could do nothing to me, he returned to 
Daubenton, who had not yet been able to rise on account 
of Mouton, who all the time dragged him sideways, 
howling and barking after the cavalry. Daubenton was 
dragged against the shafts of the waggon, so that his 
enemy on horseback could not get near him. This man 
faced Daubenton, his sword raised as if to split him in two, 
appearing all the while to mock at him. 

Daubenton, although half dead with cold and hunger, 
his face thin, pale, and blackened by the bivouac fires, still 
seemed full of energy ; but he looked odd and really 
comical, as that devil of a dog was barking all the time, 
and dragging him sideways. His eyes were shining, his 
mouth foamed with rage at being at the mercy of such an 
enemy, who in any other circumstances would not have 
dared stand up one minute before him. To quench his 
thirst, I saw him fill his hand with snow and carry it to his 
mouth, and instantly seize his weapon again ; now in his 
turn he threatened his enemy. 

By the man's shouts and gestures, one could see that he 
had no command over himself, and seemed to have drunk 
a great deal of brandy. We saw the others passing, 
repassing, and shouting round some men who had not 
been able to reach the side where the rear-guard would 
come ; we saw them thrown into the snow and trampled 
under the horses' feet, for almost all who followed were 
without arms, wounded, or with frozen feet and hands. 
Others, who were stronger, as well as some Hessians 
escaped from the first charge, were able to withstand them 
for a little, but that could not last, either — they must be 
reheved or captured. 

The cavalryman with whom my old comrade was doing 
business had just passed to the left, when Daubenton 
shouted out to me : * Don't be frightened ! don't stir ! I'll 

234 



MARSHAL NEY 

finish him off.' Scarcely had he said these words, when 
he fired. He was luckier than I. The Cuirassier was 
struck by a ball which entered under the right arm first, 
and passed out again on the left side. He uttered a 
savage cry, moved convulsively, and at the same moment 
his sword fell with the arm that held it. Then a stream 
of blood came from his mouth, his bod}' fell forward over 
his horse's head, and in this position he remained as if 
dead. 

Hardly was Daubenton rid of his enemy and free from 
Mouton so as to seize the horse, when we heard behind us 
a great noise, then cries of ' Forward ! Fix bayonets !' 
I came out of my waggon, looked towards the side from 
which the cries came, and saw Marshal Ney, musket in 
hand, running up at the head of a party of the rear-guard. 
The Russians, on seeing him, took to flight in all direc- 
tions. Those who rushed to the right on the side of the 
plain found a large ditch filled with ice and snow, which 
prevented them crossing. Several flung themselves in it 
with their horses, others stopped still in the middle of the 
road, not knowing where to go. The rear-guard seized 
several horses, and made their riders walk on foot amongst 
them. Afterwards they were left on the road. What 
else could one do ? One could barely look after one's 
self. 

I shall never forget the Marshal's commanding air at 
this moment, his splendid attitude towards the enemy, and 
the confidence with which he inspired the unhappy sick 
and wounded round him. In this moment he was like one 
of the heroes of old time. In these last days of this 
disastrous retreat he was the saviour of the remnant of 
the army. 

All this took place in less than ten minutes. Daubenton 
had rid himself of Mouton, so as to get hold of the 

235 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

horse, when a man, emerging from behind a clump of 
pines, threw the Cuirassier off the horse, seized the 
animal by the bridle, and made off. Daubenton shouted 
to him : ' Stop, rascal ! That is my horse. I killed 
the fellow !' But the other escaped with the horse 
amongst the rabble of men who were hurrying forward. 
Then Daubenton called out to me : ' Look after Mouton. 
I am going after the horse ; I must have him, or there 
will be the devil to pay.' The last word was hardly out of 
his mouth, when more than 4,000 stragglers of all nations 
came on like a torrent, separating me from him and from 
Mouton, whom I never saw again. 

This seems to be the place for giving a little biography 
of the regimental dog. 

Mouton had been with us since 1808. We found him 
in Spain, near the Bonaventura, on the banks of a river 
where the English had cut the bridge. He came with us 
to Germany. In i8og he assisted at the Battles of Essling 
and Wagram ; afterwards he returned to Spain in 1810-11. 
He left with the regiment for Russia ; but in Saxony he 
was lost, or perhaps stolen, for Mouton was a handsome 
poodle. Ten days after our arrival in Moscow we were 
immensely surprised at seeing him again. A detachment 
composed of fifteen men had left Paris some days after our 
departure to rejoin the regiment, and as they passed through 
the place where he had disappeared, the dog had recognised 
the regimental unifofm, and followed the detachment. 

Whilst marching in the midst of men, women, and even 
some children, I was constantly looking about for Dauben- 
ton, whom I regretted very much ; but behind only 
Marshal Ney and his rear-guard were to be seen, taking up 
a position on the little eminence where the Hessians had 
been attacked. 

After this adventure I was forced to stop again, as I was 

236 



THE TREASURY OF THE ARMY 

suffering so much from my colic. In front, I could see 
the Ponari mountain from the foot to the summit. The 
road about three-fourths up the left slope could be traced 
by the number of waggons, carrying more than seven 
millions in gold and silver, as well as other baggage, and 
carriages drawn by horses whose strength was exhausted, 
so that they had to be left on the road. 

A quarter of an hour after, I arrived at the foot of the 
mountain, where some had bivouacked during the night. 
Traces of the fires were still to be seen — several still 
alight, and around them men warming themselves before 
attempting the ascent. Here I learnt that the carts 
which had left Wilna the evening before at midnight, on 
reaching a defile, had not been able to go further. One 
of the first waggons had fallen open on turning over, and 
the money in it had been taken by those standing near. 
The other carriages, from top to bottom of the mountain, 
were obliged to halt. Many horses had fallen to rise no 
more. 

While they told me this, we heard the musketry fire of 
Marshal Ney's rear-guard, and on the left Cossacks were 
visible, drawn by the sight of booty. They advanced very 
cautiously, however, waiting till the rear-guard should 
have passed to reap their harvest safely. 

I started off again, but, instead of taking the road of 
the waggons, rounded the mountain to the right. Here 
several carts had tried to pass, but all had been over- 
thrown into the ditch at the side. One waggon had a 
great many trunks still in it. I should have liked to carry 
one off, but in my feeble state I did not dare to risk it, 
fearing I might not be able to climb out of the ditch again 
if I once got down. Fortunately, a man of the hospital 
corps from the Wilna garrison, seeing my dilemma, was 
kind enough to go down, and threw me a box, in which I 

337 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

found four beautiful shirts of fine linen and some cotton 
trousers. 

Since November 5th I had not changed a shirt, and my 
shreds and tatters were filled with vermin, so I put the 
whole into my knapsack, delighted. 

A little further on I picked up a band-box containing 
two superb hats. As it was very light, I put it under 
my arm ; I really don't know why — probably to exchange 
it for something else if I had the opportunity. 

The road I was following turned to the left across some 
brushwood to rejoin the highway. This road had been 
beaten out by the first men who at daybreak had crossed 
the mountain. After half an hour of painful walking, I 
heard a heavy fusillade, accompanied by loud cries, coming 
from the side of the waggons. Marshal Ney, seeing that 
the booty could not be saved, was having it distributed 
among the men, and at the same time kept the Cossacks 
off by steady firing. 

Over on my side, to the right, I saw some Cossacks 
advancing steadily. There was no one to check them 
but some men scattered here and there upon the 
mountain, trying to gain the road. All at once I was 
forced to stop : my legs gave way under me. I drank 
a good mouthful of my brandy and struggled on. I 
reached at last a point on the mountain not far from the 
road, and as I was searching for the right direction, the 
snow crumbled under me, and I sank more than five feet 
up to the eyes, and was nearly suffocated. It was with 
great trouble that I dragged myself out, completely 
exhausted with cold. 

A little further on I caught sight of a hut, and seeing 
some people in it, I stopped there. They were about 
twenty men belonging to the Guard, all with bags con- 
taining five-franc pieces. Several of them, on seeing 

238 



THE TREASURY OF THE ARMY 

me, began to call out, ' Who would like lOO francs for 
a twenty-franc piece in gold ?' But finding no one to 
exchange with them, they concluded by offering some to 
those who were without any. Just then I cared more 
for life • than for money, so I refused, for I had about 
800 francs in gold, and more than 100 francs in five-franc 
pieces. 

I remained in this hut long enough to fasten the sheep- 
skin over my head, so as to keep the cold off my ears, but 
I had no time to change my shirt, I left, following some 
musicians carrying money, but who were too heavily laden 
to go far. 

The firing now came nearer, so that we were obliged to 
double our pace. Those who were laden with money, and 
could not run, lightened their burden by shaking the five- 
franc pieces out of their bags, saying that it would have 
been better to have left them in the waggons, especially 
as there was plenty of gold to take, but that there had not 
been time to bury the chests. However, there were many 
who had sacks of double napoleons. 

A little ahead I saw several still coming from the 
direction of the waggons, carrying bags of money. As 
they were terribly weak and their fingers frozen, they 
called to those who had none, to give them a share ; but 
it very often happened that those who had carried some 
money part of the way, and who wished to share it with 
the others, had no more to give, as, farther in front, men 
who had none had forced a share from them. Those poor 
devils who had been carrying money for so long saw it 
torn from them, and were lucky if in trying to defend 
what they had they held their own, for they were always 
the weakest. 

I had gained the road, and, as I was not ver}^ cold, I 
stopped to rest. I saw other men come up, still laden 

239 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

with money, and who now and again stayed to fire on 
the Cossacks. Higher up the rear-guard had halted to 
allow some men to pass, as well as several sledges, some 
bearing the wounded, and loaded with as many barrels 
of money as it was possible for them to carry. This did not 
keep some men, drawn by the love of plunder, from still 
remaining behind, and when at bivouac in the evening, I 
was assured that many had rifled the waggons along with 
the Cossacks. 

I went on slowly and painfully. Presently I saw an 
officer of the Young Guard coming towards me, very well 
dressed, and in good health, whom I recognised at once 
as Prinier, one of my friends, passed as officer eight 
months before. Surprised to see him going in the 
opposite direction, I asked him, calling him by his name, 
where he was bound for. He demanded in his turn who 
I was. At this unexpected question from a comrade in 
the same regiment for five years, I could not refrain from 
tears. He did not know me because I was so changed 
and wretched. But an instant afterwards : ' Why, my 
dear fellow, is it you ? To think you should be so un- 
lucky !' Then he offered me a bottle which hung from 
his side, containing wine, saying, ' Take some ; ' and, as I 
had only one hand free, the good fellow supported me 
with his left hand, and with the other poured the wine 
into my mouth. 

I asked him if he had met the remnant of the army. 
He said no ; that as he had been quartered the preceding 
night in a mill some distance from the road, it was 
very probable that the column had passed, but he had 
seen terrible traces of it in some dead bodies lying upon 
the road. He had only heard yesterday, and in a very 
vague way, of the disasters that we had experienced. He 
was on his way to rejoin the army, according to orders. 

240 



THE TREASURY OF THE ARMY 

* But there is no army left.' 

* What is that firing ?' 

* That is the rear-guard, commanded by Marshal Ney.' 
Then he replied : 

* I shall join the rear-guard. 

He embraced me before leaving, but as he did so he 
saw that I had a band-box under my arm, and asked what 
it contained. I told him they were hats : he asked me 
for them, and I gave them to him with much pleasure. 
It was exactly what he needed, for he still wore his non- 
commissioned officer's shako. 

The wine he had made me drink had warmed me ; I 
decided on going on to the next bivouac. An hour after 
leaving Prinier I caught sight of fires belonging to some 
Chasseurs. I went up in an imploring way. Without 
looking at me, they said : ' Do as we are doing ; go and 
look for some wood, and make a fire yourself.' 

I was expecting this reply— the usual one. There were 
six of them ; their fire was a very poor one. They had 
no further shelter to protect them against the wind and 
the snow, should any happen to fall. 

I remained a long time standing behind them, some- 
times leaning forward and stretching out my hands to get 
a little warmth. Finally, overcome with sleep, I thought 
of my bottle of brandy. I offered it to the men ; it was 
accepted, and they made room for me. We emptied the 
bottle, passing it round, and when we had finished I fell 
asleep seated on my knapsack, my head in my hands. I 
slept perhaps two hours, often disturbed by pain and the 
cold. When I awoke I took advantage of the little fire 
that was still left to cook some rice in the kettle I had 
bought of the Jew. I scraped up some snow, and melted 
it with some rice. I could not manage it with a spoon, as 
a Chasseur was eating with me, so I turned it out into my 

241 R 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE | 

shako, and we ate it in this way. Afterwards I resumed 
my former position, and fell asleep again, the cold this 
night not being very severe. 

December iith. — When I woke it was still far from day- 
break. After tying up my food, I rose to go on ; for if 
I did not wish to die of cold and hunger, like so many 
others, I must rejoin my comrades. I walked alone till 
daybreak, stopping sometimes at a fire, where I found 
dead and dying men. When day came, I met some 
soldiers of the regiment, who told me they had passed 
the night with the staff. 

A little further on, I saw a man with a sheepskin over 
his shoulders walking painfully, leaning on his musket. 
When I got near him, I saw that he was the quarter- 
master of our company. He uttered a cry of surprise and 
joy on seeing me, for they had told him I was a prisoner 
at Wilna. Poor Rossi had both feet frozen, wrapped up 
in pieces of sheepskin. He told me, that not being able to 
walk as quickly as the others, he had been separated from 
the remnant of the regiment, and that our friends were 
very uneasy about me. Two great tears ran down his 
cheeks, and he began to weep, saying, ' Poor mother ! 
if you could only see me now ! It is all over with me ; 
I shall never see Montauban again ' (the place he came 
from). 

I tried to comfort him by pointing out that my situation 
was still worse than his own. We walked together for 
part of the day. I was obliged to stop often, owing to 
my colic. 

It might have been noon when I proposed that we 
should stop at a village that we saw ahead of us. We 
entered an empty house, and found three unfortunate 
soldiers, who told us, not being able to go any further, 
they had resolved to die there. We warned them of the 

242 



FROZEN ALIVE 

fate that awaited them should they fall into the hands 
of the Russians. For answer they showed us their feet. 
Nothing more terrible could be imagined. More than 
half their toes were missing, and the remainder ready 
to fall off. The feet were blue in colour, and seemed 
to be almost mortified. The men belonged to Marshal 
Ney's corps. Perhaps, when he passed by some time after, 
he may have saved, them. 

We stopped long enough to cook a little rice, and we 
also roasted a little horseflesh to eat later. Then we left, 
resolving to keep together ; but the great crowd of stragglers 
came up, dragged us with them, and in spite of all our 
efforts we were separated, and coUld not find each other 
again. 

I now arrived at a water-mill. There I saw a soldier 
who, in trying to cross the ice of the little mill-stream, 
had fallen through it. Although the water was only up 
to his waist, he could not get out, owing to the pieces of 
broken ice. Some artillery officers, who had found some 
ropes in the mill, threw them to him, but he had not 
strength to catch them ; although still living, he was 
frozen and motionless. 

A little further on I heard that the regiment, if it 
could be still called by that name, was to sleep at Zismorg, 
still five leagues off. I made up my mind that if I should 
have to drag myself there upon my knees, I would go ; 
but what trouble it cost me ! I fell from exhaustion on 
the snow, and thought I should rise no more. Happily, 
since my separation from Rossi the cold had greatly 
decreased. After superhuman efforts I got to the village ; 
it was none too soon, for I had done all that man could 
do to escape death. 

The first thing I saw on entering was a great fire to the 
right, against the gable end of a burnt house. Completely 

243 R— 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

exhausted, I dragged myself there ; and great was m} 
surprise on seeing my comrades. When I got up to them 
I fell almost unconscious. 

Grangier recognised me, and hurried with some others 
of my friends to help me ; they laid me on some straw. 
It was the fourth time Grangier and I had met each other 
since we left Moscow. M. Cesarisse, Lieutenant of the 
company, who had some brandy, made me take a little ; 
then I was given some horse-broth. It tasted very good, 
for this time it was salted with salt, while so far we had 
eaten everything salted with powder. 

My colic came on again worse than ever ; so I called 
Grangier, and told him I thought I had been poisoned. 
On this he melted some snow in the little kettle, and 
brewed me some of the tea he had brought from Moscow. 
I drank a great deal, and it did me good. 

Poor Rossi arrived in as miserable a state as myself. 
He was accompanied by Sergeant Bailly, whom he had 
met a moment after his separation from me. It was 
Sergeant Bailly with whom I had changed the bank-notes 
at Wilna, and who had drunk coffee with me at the Jew's. 
He was as ill as I was. He asked me how I was, and 
when I told him how ill I had been after taking the coffee, 
he was sure that they had meant to poison us, or at least 
make us good for nothing. 

I was settling myself as well as I could on the straw 
near a large fire, when all at once I felt pains in my legs 
and thighs, so violent that during a part of the night I did 
nothing but groan. I heard them saying, ' He will not be 
able to leave to-morrow.' I thought so too, and decided, 
as many had already done, to make my will. I called my 
friend Grangier, and told him that I was certain all was 
over with me. I begged him to undertake the charge of 
some small articles, to be given to my family if he had the 

244 



I MAKE MY WILL 

good fortune to see France again. These articles were a 
watch, a cross in gold and silver, a little vase in Chinese 
porcelain. I possess the two last still. I also wished to 
dispose of all the money that I had, reserving some gold 
pieces that I meant to hide in the sheepskin wrapped 
about my foot, hoping that the Russians, when they took 
me, would not begin searching among my rags. 

Grangier, who had listened without interrupting me, 
now asked if I were in a fever or dreaming. I said that 
I was in a fever, but I was quite clear-headed. He began 
to lecture me, reminding me of my courage in worse 
situations than this. 

' Yes,' I said, ' but then I was stronger.' 

He assured me that I had said as much at the passage 
of the Berezina when I had been quite as ill, and since 
then I had come eighty leagues. As for the fifteen that 
remained before reaching Kowno, they would be done in 
a couple of days ; with the help of my friends I should 
manage them very well. To-morrow they would only 
walk four leagues. 

* So,' he said, ' try to rest, and wrap up those things 
again. I will only take your kettle, and carry it for you.' 

Another said, ' I will take this other case (the surgeon's 
case), which must worry you.' 

Meanwhile, Rossi, who was lying near, remarked : ' My 
friend, you will not be here alone to-morrow morning ; I 
shall share your fate, for I am quite as bad as you are. 
The journey to-day has done for me, and I shall not be 
able to go any further. But when the rear-guard passes 
by, we may be able to march with it, for we shall have 
had some extra hours' rest. If we have not enough 
strength to follow it, we will go to the right. To the 
first village or the first house that we find, and put our- 
selves under the protection of the Baron or master ; perhaps 

245 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

he will have pity on us until we are better, and we can 
reach Prussia or Poland. Very likely the Russians will 
not come further than Kowno.' 

I told him that I would do as he wished. M. Cesarisse, 
whom Grangier had just told of my intention, came up to 
comfort me. He said that the pain I suffered only came 
from the fatigue of yesterday. He made me lie before 
the fire, and, as there was plenty of wood, they piled on 
enough to roast me. This fire did me so much good that 
the pain gradually left me, and I slept for some hours. 
Poor Rossi did so too. 

In 1830 I was appointed an officer of the staff at Brest. 
On the day of my arrival, sitting at table with my wife 
and children at the Hotel de Provence, a man sat opposite 
to me, very well dressed, who looked at me a great deal. 
Every other moment he stopped eating, and, his head 
resting on his hand, he seemed to think deeply, or to be 
recalling certain memories. Afterwards he spoke to the 
landlord of the hotel. My wife, who was beside me, 
pointed it out to me. 

' Yes,' I said, ' that man begins to puzzle me, and if it 
goes on I shall ask him what it means.' 

At that very moment he rose, threw down his napkin, 
and passed into the office where travellers' names were 
registered. He re-entered the dining-room, exclaiming 
aloud, ' It is he — I was not mistaken ' (calling me by my 
name). ' It is indeed my friend.' 

I recognised him by his voice, and we were in each 
other's arms. It was Rossi, whom I had not seen since 
1813, seventeen years before. He believed me dead,.and I 
thought the same of him, for I had learnt on my return 
from prison that he had been wounded under the walls of 
Paris. This recognition interested all who were present, 

246 



MEETING A COMRADE 

about twenty in number, and we were asked to relate our 
adventures during the Russian campaign. This we did 
willingly, and at midnight we were still at table, drinking 
champagne to Napoleon's memory. It is hardly surprising 
that at first I did not recognise my comrade, for I left him 
delicate, and I found him stout and strong, his hair almost 
gray. He lived at Montauban, and was now a rich 
merchant. 

When the moment of departure came, I thought no 
more of remaining behind, but it was impossible to walk 
alone. Grangier and Leboude held me up under the arms, 
and others did as much for Rossi. At the end of half an 
hour's walking I was much better ; but all the way I 
needed the help of one arm, often of two. In this manner 
we arrived in good time at the little village where we were 
to sleep ; there were very few dwellings to be found, and, 
although we were the first to arrive, we were obliged to 
sleep in a yard. By chance we were able to find plenty 
of straw, which we used to cover us ; but, with our usual 
ill-luck, the straw took fire. Everyone saved himself as 
best he could ; many had their coats burnt. A quarter- 
master of Velites, named Couchere, was more unfortunate 
than the others ; the fire caught his cartridge-case, and 
his whole face was burnt. And as for me, without the help 
of my comrades I should probably have been roasted, as 
I could not possibly move by myself. I was taken by the 
legs and shoulders, and dragged up to the hut, where 
General Roguet and other officers were quartered. They 
fled on seeing the flames, thinking that the house itself 
was on fire. After this misfortune came a high north wind, 
and, as we were without shelter, we entered the General's 
house, which consisted of two rooms. We took possession 
of one, in spite of him ; more than half of us were obliged 

247 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

to stand up the whole night, but, still, it was better than 
staying outside exposed to bad weather. That would have 
killed three-fourths of us. 

December i^th. — Kowno was at least ten leagues off, so 
General Roguet made us start before daybreak. 

A shower of hail had fallen, forming ice upon the road. 
If, as on the preceding evening, I had not had my friends' 
help, I should very probably, like so many others, have 
finished my life's journey on that last day in Russia. 

It was hardly dawn when we reached the foot of a 
mountain which was one sheet of ice. What trouble we, 
had climbing it ! We had to squeeze ourselves into groups 
to obtain mutual support. On this march there was more 
readiness to help one another than before. Probably it 
was the hope of arriving at the end of the journey. I 
remember that, when a man fell, cries were heard, ' Stop ! 
there is a man fallen !' I noticed a sergeant-major of our 
battalion shout, ' Stop, there ! I swear that not one of 
you shall go on until the two left behind have been picked 
up and brought on.' It was by his firmness they were 
saved. 

At the top of the mountain it was light enough to see, 
but the slope was so rapid, and the ice so smooth, that 
no one dared to venture down. General Roguet, some 
officers, and several sappers who were walking in front, 
had fallen. Some picked themselves up, and those who 
were strong enough went down in a sitting position, guiding 
themselves with their hands ; others who were weaker 
trusted to Providence — that is to say, they rolled over and 
over like barrels. I was of this latter number, and I should 
most likely have thrown myself into a ravine, or been lost 
in the snow, but for Grangier, who went in front of me, 
moving backwards and stopping, so that I ran into him. 
He drove his bayonet into the ice to hold on by, and when 

248 



THE OLD GRENADIER, FALOPPA 

I came up he moved further, sHding and repeating the 
same process, till I reached the bottom, bruised all over, 
and my left hand bleeding. The General had ordered a 
halt to assure himself that everybody had come up — 
the roll-call had been taken the evening before— and 
happily no one was missing. It was broad daylight, and we 
could see that the mountain might have been avoided by 
turning to the right. The other corps who were marching 
after us came along this side of it without accident. This 
climbing had tired me so much that I could only walk very 
slowly, and, as I did not wish to abuse the kindness of my 
friends, I begged them to follow the column. One of the 
company, however, stayed with me, a Piedmontese, by 
name Faloppa. I had not seen him for several days. 

Those who were fortunate enough to keep their health, 
to have unfrozen feet, and to march at the head of the 
column, missed seeing all the disasters which I, for instance, 
sick and crippled, witnessed daily. Those in front could 
not see the men who fell around them, while we in the 
rear passed over the long train of dead and dying that 
each corps left behind it. We had also the disadvantage 
of being harassed by the enemy at our heels. 

Faloppa, the man who had stayed with me, was in no 
better position. We had been walking together for a 
quarter of an hour, when he turned towards me, saying : 
' Well, sergeant, if we had those little pots of dripping 
here that you made me throw away in Spain, you would 
be very glad, and we could make fine soup.' It was not 
the first time he had made that remark. The episode, 
comical enough, was this : 

One day, after we had made a long expedition in the 
mountains of Asturias, we were quartered at St. Hiliaume, 
a little town in Castile, on the sea-coast. I was quartered 
with my subdivision in a large building forming the right 

249 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

wing of the Court House.* This part of it was very large, 
and inhabited by an old bachelor, absolutely alone. On 
arriving at his house we asked him whether we could buy 
some butter or dripping to make soup, and cook some 
haricots. He replied that even for gold there was none to 
be had in the entire town. A moment afterwards the 
muster was called. I left Faloppa to do the cooking, and 
commissioned another man to search through the town 
for some butter or fat, but none was to be had. When 
we came back, the first thing Faloppa said to us was that 
the old bachelor was a rascal. ' How is that ?' He 
answered us, ' Look !' 

He showed me three gallipots containing some beautiful 
fat that we saw was goose-dripping. Everyone exclaimed, 
'There's your Spanish beggar for you. There's a rascal !' 
Our cook had made some splendid soup, and had prepared 
some haricots. We sat down to eat under a great 
chimney-piece, like the entrance to a house, when sud- 
denly the Spaniard returned, wrapped in his brown 
mantle, and, seeing us eating, hoped we should enjoy our 
meal. I asked him why he had not wanted to sell us the 
dripping. ' No, senor,' he answered, ' I had none. If I 
had had any, I would have given it to you with pleasure, 
and for nothing !' Then Faloppa, taking up one of the 
little pots, showed it to him. ' Then this is not fat, is it, 
rascal of a Spaniard ?' Looking at the little pot, he 
changed colour, and stood as if thunderstruck. Pressed 
for a reply, he told us that it certainly was dripping, 
but the manteca de ladron (thieves' fat). He was the 
town executioner, and what we had found and made our 
soup with was the fat of hanged men, which he sold for 
ointment. 

* This dwelling was a Gothic castle, of which many are to be found 
in Spain. — Author's Note. 

250 



THE THIEVES' DRIPPING 

Hardly had he finished, when all the spoons flew about 
his head. He had barely time to escape ; and not one of 
us, although very hungry, wanted to eat any haricots ; 
the soup was almost all gone. Faloppa only went on 
eating just the same, saying that the Spaniard had lied. 
' And even were it so,' said he, ' the soup is good, and the 
haricots still better.' So saying, he offered me some to 
taste, which turned me sick. I went across to a brandy 
merchant's facing our quarters, and asked him with whom 
we were quartered. He crossed himself, repeating over 
and over again: 'Ave, Maria, piirissima, sin peccado con- 
cebida /' He told me that it was the executioner. For 
some time I was ill and sick with disgust ; but Faloppa, 
when he left, carried off the remainder of the fat, pretend- 
ing he would prepare us soup with it again. I was obliged 
to make him throw it away ; and that is why in Russia, 
when he had nothing to eat, he was always quoting this 
story. 

For half an hour we had not lost sight of the column, 
showing that we had walked pretty well. I must say 
that the road happened to be better ; but soon afterwards 
it became rough and as slippery as in the morning. The 
cold was very keen, and we had already passed some men 
dying by the way, although clothed in thick furs. Ex- 
haustion, however, was answerable for a good deal. 
Faloppa fell several times, and if I had not been with 
him to help him up again, he would have been left 
behind. 

The road now became better ; we could see the long 
train of the column in front of us. We redoubled our 
efforts to rejoin it, but did not succeed. We came upon a 
hamlet of five or six houses, of which half were on fire, 
where we stopped a little while. Several men were 
gathered round ; many seemed quite unable to go on, and 

251 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

several horses had dropped, dying, and were struggHng on 
the snow. Faloppa cut a piece from the thigh of one of 
them, which we cooked on the points of our swords at the 
fire of the burning houses. 

While we were busy with this job, cannonading was 
heard in the direction from which we had come, I 
then saw more than 10,000 stragglers spreading in dis- 
order over the width of the road. Behind them marched 
the rear-guard. I have thought since that Marshal Ney 
was firing in order to make all these unfortunate creatures 
believe the Russians were upon us, and so hurry them on 
to Kowno that same day. It was part of the wreck of the 
Grand Army. 

Our meat was not half cooked before we thought it 
wiser to decamp as quickly as possible, and not to be sub- 
merged in this fresh torrent. 

There were still six leagues to walk before reaching 
Kowno, and we were quite worn out. It might have been 
about eleven o'clock, when Faloppa said : ' Sergeant, we 
shall not get there to-day, the ruhan de queue is too long.* 
We shall never be able to leave this devil's country ; it 
is all over, I shall not see my beautiful Italy again !' Poor 
fellow ! he spoke the truth. 

We had been walking about an hour since our last rest, 
when we came upon several groups of forty or fifty men, 
more or less composed of officers, non-commissioned 
officers, and some men, carrying in the midst of them the 
regimental eagle. These men, miserable though they 
were, seemed proud to have been so far able to keep and 
guard this sacred trust. It was evident that in marching 
they avoided mingling with the large masses that covered 
the road, so as to keep together in an orderly way. 

* Ruban de queue : a soldier's expression to designate a long march. 
— Author's Note. 

252 



CROSSING THE NIEMEN 

We walked as long as we were able with these littlo 
detachments ; we did all we could to follow them, but 
the artillery and musketry fire began again. The detach- 
ment halted at the command of some person ; one could 
never have told by the rags covering him who he might be. 
Never shall I forget the tone of his command. ' Come, 
children of France ! Another halt ! It must never be 
said that we went faster at the sound of artillery. Right 
about face!' and' instantly the men fell into rank without 
a word, and turned in the direction of the firing. As for 
us, having no colours to defend, we continued to drag 
ourselves along. It was very lucky for us that on this 
particular day the cold was not so intense, for we fell 
more than ten times, and if it had been freezing as on 
the day before, there we should have remained. 

After walking a certain time among stragglers like 
ourselves, we caught sight of a moving line, a column 
apparently, in very close order, now moving, then halting, 
again moving on. This seemed as if there must be a defile 
just there. The road began to narrow to the right on 
account of a hill through which it had been cut, and 
on the left was bounded by a large river that I think must 
have been the Niemen. There the men, while waiting 
till some waggons passed coming from Wilna, hustled 
and shoved one another in great confusion. It was a 
question of who could get over the first. Many climbed 
down to the ice-covered river, in order to gain the right 
of the column or the end of the defile. Several who found 
themselves on the extreme edge were thrown down the 
banks, which in this place were at least five feet high ; 
some were killed. 

When we reached the left of this column, we had to do 
as those who preceded us — we had to wait. I came upon 
a sergeant of Velites named Poumo, belonging to our 

253 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

regiment, who proposed that I should cross the river with 
him, telhng me that on the other side we should find 
houses where we could pass the night, and that the next 
day, being thoroughly rested, we could reach Kowno 
easily ; ' for,' said he, * it is not more than two leagues 
further.' I consented to his proposal, especially as I had 
no strength to go on, and then there was the hope of spend- 
ing a night in a house with a fire ! I told Faloppa to follow 
us. Poumo went down first. I followed him, sliding on 
my back ; but, after taking a few steps across the snow 
which covered the river in great heaps, I saw the impos- 
sibility of going further, so I signed to Faloppa, who had 
not got down, to stop, for I had just discovered that beneath 
the snow was nothing but a mass of jagged ice, with holes 
in between. This was probably the result of a thaw, 
followed by a hard frost. 

In the meantime Poumo, who was walking some steps 
ahead of me, stopped ; but, seeing that I was not following, 
he still got across himself with three old Grenadiers of the 
Guard. It was only, however, with great labour that they 
reached the other bank. 

I got nearer to Faloppa, from whom I was separated 
only by the height of the bank, to tell him to follow the 
left of the column ; that, as I was down on the ice, I was 
going to follow it up to the end of the defile, and that I 
would wait for him there. Then I followed the mass 
of men, slowly advancing, then stopping, shouting and 
swearing, for those on the bank were afraid of falling to 
the bottom. 

I had already gone three-fourths of the length of the 
defile when I saw that the river turned abruptly to the 
left, while the road, widening again, went straight on. I 
had to return almost to the middle of the pass, to the 
spot where the bank seemed less steep ; but weak as I 

254 



A VETERAN 

was, and having only one hand of any use, I tried in vain 
to climb it. 

I mounted on an ice-heap, so that without stooping 
very much some helping hand could be given me. I 
supported myself with my left hand on my musket, and 
held out the other to those who, within reach of me, could 
have pulled me up by a slight effort. But I asked in vain. 
No one answered me ; they had not even the appearance 
of paying any attention to what I was saying. At last 
God had pity on me again. Just when the crowd of men 
had halted, I saw an old trooper of the Imperial Guard 
on foot, his moustaches and beard covered with icicles, 
and wrapped in a great white cloak. I spoke to him still 
in the same tone : 

* Comrade, I beg of you, as, like me, you're in the 
Imperial Guard, give me a hand, and you will save my 
life.' 

' How do you think I am to give you a hand ?' he said, 
* I have none.' At this answer I nearly fell off the ice- 
heap. ' However,' he continued, ' if you can take hold of 
my cloak, I will try to pull you up.' 

Then he stooped. I grasped the cloak ; I even held it 
with my teeth, and scrambled on to the road. Happily, 
at this moment there was no pressing forward, or I might 
have been trampled under foot without perhaps ever rising 
again. When I was really safe, the old Grenadier told me 
to keep a firm hold of him, which I did, but with much 
difficulty, as the effort which I had just made had greatly 
weakened me. 

Shortly afterwards they began to move forward. We 
passed by three fallen horses, the waggon having over- 
turned into the river. This was what had caused the 
delay in the march. At last we reached a point where 
the pass widened, and where we could walk more easily. 

255 



L 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

Just then Faloppa, whom I had left at the entrance of 
the pass, came up weeping and swearing in Itahan, saying 
that he would never be able to go further. The old trooper 
asked me who this creature was who cried like a woman. 
I told him he was a barbet, a Piedmontese. 

' He will never see the marmots and bears of his native 
mountains again,' he answered. 

I encouraged poor Faloppa to keep on ; I gave him my 
arm, and we continued to follow the column. 

It might have been about five o'clock ; we had still 
more than two leagues to go before reaching Kowno. 
The old Grenadier related how his fingers had frozen 
before reaching Smolensk. After suffering frightful dis- 
tress up to the passage of the Berezina, he had found a 
house on arriving at Ziembin, where he had spent the 
night. During that night all his fingers fell off one after 
the other, but since then he had not suffered nearly so 
much. His comrade, who had never left him before, had 
gone off to the mountain near Wilna to monter a la roue* 
and since that day he had not seen him. 

After going on for another half-hour, we reached a little 
village, where we stopped in one of the last houses to rest 
and warm ourselves a little ; but we could not find room, 
for the house was crammed with men stretched out on 
the evil-smelling straw, and shrieking and swearing when- 
ever one happened to touch them. Nearly all their hands 
and feet were frozen. We were obliged to be contented 
with a stable, where we came upon a trooper of the 
Guard of the same regiment and squadron as our old 
Grenadier. He still had his horse, and, hoping to find a 
hospital at Kowno, undertook the charge of his comrade. 

* Mofiter d, la roue : an expression used by old soldiers to indicate 
the taking of money from the waggons abandoned on the mountain of 
Ponari. — Author's Note, 

256 



FALOPPA'S DESPAIR 

We had still a league and a half to walk, and the cold 
had considerably increased. Fearing that it would grow 
still colder, I told Faloppa that he must go ; but the poor 
devil, who had laid himself down on the manure-heap, 
could not get up. It was only by begging and swearing, 
with the help of the trooper, I succeeded in getting him 
on his legs and pushing him outside the stable. On 
the road I gave him my arm. When he was rather 
warm, he walked fairly well, but without speaking, for 
about a league. 

During the time we had been resting in the village the 
great part of the stragglers after the army had passed us ; 
there was no one to be seen either in front or behind but 
miserable creatures like ourselves — in fact, those whose 
strength was entirely gone. Several were stretched on 
the snow — a sign of their approaching end. 

Faloppa, whom till then I had been continually coaxing 
on by saying, ' Here we are. Just a little more courage,' 
sank upon his knees, then on his hands. I thought he 
was dead, and fell at his side, overwhelmed with fatigue. 
The cold, which began to go through me, forced me to 
make an effort to rise again, or, to tell the truth, it was a 
fit of rage, for I got upon my knees swearing. Then, 
seizing Faloppa by the hair, I made him sit up ; but 
he looked at me stupefied. Seeing that he was not dead, 
I said to him : 

• Courage, my friend. We are not far from Kowno, for 
I can see the convent* on our left. Don't you see it, too?' 

' No, sergeant,' he answered ; ' I see nothing but the 
snow which is turning round me. Where are we ?' 

I told him we were near a place where we could sleep 
and find bread and brandy. 

* It was the convent that I had visited on June 20th, at the time of 
the passage of the Niemen. — Author's Note. 

257 S 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

At this instant chance brought five peasants near us who 
were crossing the same road. I proposed to two of these 
men, in consideration of a five-franc piece each, that they 
should lead Faloppa as far as Kowno ; but under pretext 
that it was late, and that they were cold, they made some 
difficulties. I guessed that it was the fear of not being 
paid (for they spoke German). I took two five-franc 
pieces from my bag and gave them one, promising them 
the other on our arrival. They were satisfied. I then 
told three others to go back to where a foot soldier was 
lying whom we had passed, and I said they would have 
some money for leading him, and they went off at once. 

The two peasants had lifted Faloppa, but the poor devil 
could not stand. They seemed at a loss what to do. 
Then I showed them how to carry him on a musket, 
each supporting him with an arm behind. But we did 
not get far this way. They decided to take him on their 
backs in turn, while the other carried his knapsack and 
gun, and took me under his arm, for I could hardly 
drag my legs along. During the distance to the town, 
which was not more than half a league, we were obliged 
to stop five or six times to rest and change Faloppa from 
one back to another. If we had had to v/alk a quarter of 
an hour longer, we should never have got there. 

Meanwhile the bulk of stragglers had passed us, but 
many others, as well as the rear-guard, were still behind 
us. We heard at intervals the sound of artillery, which 
seemed to us like the expiring sigh of our army. At last 
we reached Kowno by a road our peasants knew of, and 
that the column had not taken. The first place we saw 
was a stable. We went in, and the peasants set us down ; 
but before giving them the last five-franc piece, I implored 
them to find us a little wood and straw. They brought 
some of both, and even made us a fire, for it was im- 

258 



KOWNO 

possible for me to stir ; and as for Faloppa, I looked upon 
him as dead. He was seated in the angle of the wall, 
saying nothing, but every now and then making faces, 
and lifting his hands to his mouth, as if to eat. The fire 
burning before him seemed to restore him a little. I at 
last paid my peasants. Before leaving us they brought us 
still more wood, and made me understand they would 
come back. Trusting to their promises, I gave them five 
francs, begging them to bring me some bread, some 
brandy, or anything else. They promised to do so, but 
never returned. 

While we were n the stable, terrible things were 
happening in the town. The remnant of the corps arriv- 
ing in front of us on the preceding evening, not being 
able to find lodgings, bivouacked in the street. They 
pillaged the flour and brandy stores. Many were intoxi- 
cated, and fell asleep on the snow, to wake no more. The 
following day I was told that more than fifteen hundred 
had died in this way. 

After the departure of the peasants, five men, two of 
whom belonged to our regiment, came to find a place in 
the stable ; but as they had met soldiers returning from 
the town who told them that flour and brandy were 
to be had there, two went off to try and get some. 
They left their arms and knapsacks, but did not return. 
To crown my misfortune, I had nothing to cook any 
rice in, for Grangier had my kettle. Not one of the 
three men remaining with me had anything we could 
make use of, and not one would stir to go and look for 
a pot. 

Meanwhile the roar of the distant artillery and the 
howling of the wind were mingled with the cries of men 
dying on the snow. Although the cold on this day was 
not excessive, a large number of men perished from it. 

259 s — 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

It was the last effort, and of those who had reached 
this point, not half had seen Moscow ; they were the 
garrisons of Smolensk, of Orcha, of Wilna, as well as the 
remnant of the main army of Generals Victor and Oudinot, 
and of General Loison's division, which we had met dying 
of cold before reaching Wilna. 

The men who were with me in the stable lay down 
around the fire. To keep myself alive, I ate a piece of the 
half-cooked horseflesh ; it was the last before leaving this 
country of misfortune. 

Afterwards I tried to sleep, but I lay awake a long time 
in great pain. However, sleep overcame me in its turn, and 
I dozed I do not know for how long. When I awoke I saw 
that the three soldiers who had arrived after us were 
preparing to go, and yet it was still far from daybreak. I 
asked them the reason. They told me they were going to 
instal themselves in a house they had discovered where 
there was some straw and a well-heated stove. The house 
was occupied by a man, two women, and four soldiers of the 
Kowno garrison. 

I immediately set about following them, but I could not 
leave Faloppa. Looking towards the place where I had left 
him, I was astonished at not seeing him" there. The soldiers 
told me that for more than an hour he had done nothing 
but prowl about the stable on all fours, howling like a bear. 
Our fire was low, and I had some trouble in finding him. 
At last I did so, and to see him better I lighted a piece of 
resinous wood. 

When I went near him he began to laugh, growling like 
a bear, running first after one of us, and then the other, 
and all the time upon his hands and knees. Sometimes 
he spoke, but in Italian. I knew that he thought he was 
in his own country in the midst of the mountains, playing 
with the friends of his childhood ; now and again he called 

260 



KOWNO 

for his father and mother ; in short, poor Faloppa had 
gone mad. 

As I had to leave him for a time to go and see the new 
lodging, I took care that during my absence nothing 
should happen to him. We put out the fire and shut the 
door. On reaching our new quarters, we found two of 
the men busily eating soup. They did not seem to have 
suffered much, and, indeed, since September they had been 
at Kowno. 

Before throwing myself on the straw, I asked the 
peasant if he would come with me to fetch a sick man, 
that I would give him five francs, at the same time 
showing him the piece. The peasant had not yet replied, 
when the German soldiers proposed that we should give 
them the preference. 

' We will go for nothing,' said one of the other soldiers. 

'And give him some soup as well,' said another. 

I showed my gratitude by saying that one could easily 
see that they were Frenchmen. They took a wooden chair 
on which to carry the sick man, and we set out, but as I 
could only walk with difficulty, they gave me an arm. 
I told them of Faloppa's sad plight if he were left to the 
mercy of the Russians. 

' What, Russians ?' said one of the soldiers. 

* Certainly,' I said ; * Russian Cossacks will be here 
perhaps in a few hours !' 

These poor soldiers thought that it was only cold and 
wretchedness we had brought with us. 

On entering the stable we found the poor devil of a 
Piedmontese lying his full length behind the door. He 
was placed upon the chair, and in this way was carried to 
the new lodging. When he was laid near the stove on 
some good straw, he began to mutter disconnected words. 
I went near him to listen ; he was no longer recognisable. 

261 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

His face was all over blood, but it was the blood from his 
hands that he had bitten or tried to eat ; his mouth, too, 
was filled with straw and earth. The two women had pity 
on him, bathed his face with water and vinegar, and the 
German soldiers, ashamed to have done nothing, undressed 
him. A shirt was found in his knapsack, which we put 
on him instead of the ragged one he wore; then they 
offered him something to drink : he could not swallow, 
and every now and again clenched his teeth fast together. 
Afterwards he gathered up the straw with his hands, as if 
he would put it over him. One of the women said it was 
a sign of death. I was very sorry for it, as we had reached 
the limit of our suffering. I had done all I could to save 
him, just as he would have done for me, for he had been 
five years in the company, and would have died for me. 
He proved it on more than one occasion, especially in 
Spain. The gentle warmth of the room made me more 
comfortable than I could have thought possible. I felt 
no more pain, and I slept for two or three hours, a 
thing that had not happened since my departure from 
Moscow. 

I was awakened by one of the soldiers, who said: 
' Sergeant, I think that everybody is going, for there is a 
great noise outside. We shall have to muster in the square, 
according to the orders we received yesterday. As for 
your soldier,' he added, * you must think of him no more ; 
he is done for.' 

I raised myself to see ; the two women were at his side. 
The youngest handed me a leather purse containing money, 
saying that it had fallen from one of the pockets of the 
overcoat. There might have been about twenty-five to 
thirty francs in Prussian pieces, and some other money. 
I gave it all to the two women, telling them to look after 
the sick man till his last moment, which could not be far 

262 



AN ALARM 

off, for he scarcely breathed. They promised me not to 
abandon him. 

The noise in the street went on increasing. It was 
already day, but in spite of that we could not see much, 
for the little squares of glass were dimmed with ice, and 
the sky, covered with thick clouds, foretold a great deal 
of snow still to come. 

We were ready to go out, when all at once we heard the 
sound of cannon from the direction of Wilna, and quite 
close to us. The discharge of musketry mingled with it, 
and the cries and oaths of men. We heard the falling of 
individual blows. We at once thought that the Russians 
were in the town, and that fighting was going on ; we 
seized our arms. The two German soldiers, not used to 
this sort of music, were at a loss. However, they came 
and ranged themselves at our side. We had the muskets 
belonging to the two men who had left the evening before, 
and who had not returned, and Faloppa's also. They 
were all loaded ; we had plenty of powder. One of the 
German soldiers had a bottle of brandy, which he had not 
so far mentioned ; but thinking that he might want some- 
thing of us, he offered it. It did us good. The other 
German gave me a piece of bread. 

One of them said to me, ' Sergeant, suppose we put 
one of these guns into the hands of that peasant there 
who is trembling beside the stove ? Do you not think he 
would be able to bring down his man ?' 

* No doubt,' I said. 

* Come here, peasant,' said the soldier. 

The poor devil, not knowing what was wanted of him, 
allowed himself to be led forward. He was offered a 
musket. He looked at it, like an imbecile, without taking 
it. It was placed upon his shoulder ; he as^ked what he 
was to do with it. I told him it was to kill the Cossacks 

263 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

with. At that word he let his weapon fall. It was picked 
up by a soldier, who forcibly made him take hold of it, 
threatening if he did not fire upon the Cossacks to 
run a bayonet through his body. The peasant made us 
understand that he would be recognised by the Russians 
as being a peasant, and that they would kill him. During 
this colloquy, other cries were heard from the other ex- 
tremity of the room ; it was the two women weeping. 
Faloppa had just breathed his last. 

The soldiers took the coat of the dead man, and forced 
the peasant to wrap himself in it. In less than two 
minutes he was completely equipped, for a sword and a 
cartridge-case were hung on him, and a cap put on his 
head, with the result that he could not have recognised 
himself. 

This scene took place while the two women were making 
lamentations over the dead (probably on account of the 
money I had given them). They were therefore not aware 
of the transformation of their man. 

The noise we had been hearing for the last few moments 
increased tremendously. I thought I could distinguish 
the voice of General Roguet ; he indeed it was who was 
swearing and dealing blows to everyone indiscriminately, 
officers and non-commissioned officers as well as privates, 
to make them set out. He entered the houses, and made 
the officers search them to be sure no men were left in 
them. He did right, and it is perhaps the first good 
service I ever saw him render a soldier. Certainly this 
distribution of blows came easier to him than the dis- 
tribution of bread and wine which he had made in Spain. 

I caught sight of a foot soldier who had propped himself 
against a window, and was fixing his bayonet to the end 
of his musket. I asked him if the Russians were in 
the town. 

264 



GENERAL ROGUET 

' No, no ; not at all. . . . Don't you see it is that brute 
of a General Roguet striking at everybody with his baton ? 
But just let him come here ; I'm waiting for him. . . .' 

We had not yet left the house, when I saw Adjutant- 
Major Roustan come to a halt in front of the door. 
Recognising me, he said : ' Well, what are you doing there ? 
Out with you ! No one is to remain within a house, no 
matter of what regiment, for I have orders to strike down 
any and everybody.' 

We came out, but the peasant, whom we had forgotten, 
naturally remained in his own house, and closed the door. 
The Adjutant-Major, who saw the movement, and thought 
it was a soldier wanting to hide himself, opened it again 
in his turn, entered the house, and ordered the new soldier 
to get out, or he would be knocked down. The peasant 
looked at him without replying. The Adjutant- Major 
seized the man by the belt, and thrust him into the midst 
of us. The poor devil now tried to struggle, and to explain 
in his own language. He was not listened to ; the Adjutant- 
Major, simply thinking it was because he had not given 
him the time to bring away his knapsack and gun, re- 
entered the house, took them both, and brought them to 
him. In the house he saw the dead man and two women 
weeping ; so, coming out, he said aloud : ' This rascal here 
is not so stupid as he looks ; he wanted to stay in the 
house in order to console the widow. He looks like a 
German. Of what company is he ? I don't remember 
having seen him.' 

No one paid much attention to what the Adjutant was 
saying ; each one had enough to do to look after himself. 
The wife, who had heard her husband's voice, had run to 
the door where we were still standing. The man, on 
seeing her, began to speak, but could not make her recog- 
nise him. There he was amongst us, not able to stir ; 

265 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

she never imagined that a Lithuanian, the Emperor of 
Russia's subject, had the honour of being a French soldier 
of the Imperial Guard, marching off, not to glory, but to 
misery. The whole affair took less than ten minutes. I 
have thought since that the poor devil must have felt 
pretty miserable, penned up there in the midst of us. 

We set off, but very slowly. We were in an alley, where 
were several men who had died in the night from drinking 
brandy, and being afterwards seized by the cold; the 
greater number, however, were to be found in the town, 
which I did not enter. 

Meanwhile we reached the place where there are two 
ways leading to the bridge over the Niemen. We now 
walked more easily, and in a few minutes we were on the 
banks of the stream. There we saw that several thousand 
men were already in front of us, squeezing and pushing to 
get across. As the bridge was narrow, a large number 
climbed down on to the ice-covered river, which was not 
strong enough to bear. It consisted merely of pieces of 
ice that had been thawed and frozen over again. At the 
risk of being drowned or hurt, everyone tried to get across 
as quickly as possible, thinking that once on the further 
side we would be safe. We found out later how greatly 
we were deceived. 

While waiting till we could pass, Colonel Bodehn, who 
commanded our regiment, ordered the officers to prevent 
anyone crossing the bridge by himself. We were now 
about sixty men, or thereabouts, the remnant of 2,000, 
all grouped around the Colonel. He looked sadly on the 
remains of his fine regiment, probably drawing a contrast 
in his own mind. Five months before we had passed over 
this same bridge with the whole great and brilliant army, 
and now it was almost annihilated ! To encourage us he 
made us a speech ; I am afraid very few listened. 

266 



FROM KOWNO TO ELBING 

* Come, my men ! I will not tell you to be brave — I 
know how much courage you have. During the three 
years I have been with you you have given proofs of it 
under all circumstances, and particularly during this 
terrible campaign, in battles and all the privations you 
have had to undergo. But, remember, the more distress 
and danger, the more glory and honour, and the greater 
the reward for those who have had , the endurance to go 
through with it.' 

Then he asked how many were present. I seized this 
opportunity to tell M. Cesarisse that Faloppa had died 
that morning. He asked me if I was certain of it, and I 
answered that I had seen him die, and that Adjutant- 
Major Roustan himself had seen him. 

* Who ? — I ?' responded the Adjutant-Major. 'Wh^re?' 

* In the house you told me to come out of, and which 
you entered to bring out another person.' 

* True,' said he, * I saw a dead man upon the straw, but 
it was the master of the house, for the woman was crying 
over him.' 

I told him that the one he had turned into the street 
was the real husband, and the man on the straw was 
Faloppa. We looked for the peasant in our ranks, but 
he had disappeared. 

While we were resting on the banks of the Niemen, 
those who were in front of us had crossed over the bridge, 
or over the ice. Now we advanced, but when we had got 
across we could not mount the bank by the road, which 
was blocked by waggons. Order was now at an end. 
Everyone went as he pleased. Several of my friends got 
me to follow them, and we went to the left. When we 
were about thirty paces from the bridge we began to climb 
up on to the road. I walked behind Grangier, whom I 
had fortunately found again, and who looked after me 

267 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

much better than after himself. He beat out a passage 
through the snow in front of me, shouting out in his 
Auvergne dialect, ' Come along, petiot ' (little 'un), ' follow 
me.' But the petiot could not drag one leg after another. 

Grangier was already three-quarters up the side when I 
had only done a third of the way. Stopping, and resting 
on his musket, he made signs that he would wait there for 
me. But I was so weak I could not pull my leg out of 
the snow. At last, unable to do more, I fell on my side, 
and rolled as far as the Niemen, landing on the ice. 

As there was a great deal of snow, I did not hurt 
myself much, but I felt a pain in my shoulders, and my 
face was bleeding from the branches of some bushes I had 
rolled over. I picked myself up without a word, as if it 
was something perfectly natural, for I was so inured to 
suffering that nothing surprised me. 

After having picked up my musket, I tried to climb up 
again at the same place, but the thing was impossible. I 
now thought I would see whether I could not manage to 
get under the waggons at the outlet of the bridge. There 
I dragged myself with difficulty. As I got near the first, 
I saw several Grenadiers and foot soldiers of the Guards 
mounted on the wheels, taking out handfuls of the money 
that was packed in the waggons. I was not tempted to 
do the same — I only tried to get through. But just then 
I heard a shouting : ' The Cossacks ! To arms ! to arms!' 
This cry was followed by several musket-shots, then by a 
great movement, which spread from the bottom to the top 
of the slope. 

Not one among the Grenadiers and Chasseurs took any 
notice : their heads were in the waggon. I pulled one by 
the leg ; he looked round, asking me if I had any money. 
I said, * No ; but the Cossacks are up there.' ' Is that 
all?' he replied. 'We are not going to disturb ourselves 

268 



FROM KOWNO TO ELBING 

for those beasts, and leave them our money. Who wants 
some ? I'll give it him.' And he threw two large bags of 
five-franc pieces on to the ground. All this was only to 
occupy those who were coming up, for I understood that 
they had just found some gold — I had heard the words 
'jaunets' and 'forty-franc pieces.' 

I took possession of the musket of one of the Grenadiers 
busy taking gold^ left my own, which was filled with 
snow, and returned to the outlet of the bridge to go over 
the same ground again. 

I had hardly reached the bridge, when I met Captain 
Debonnez of the Tirailleurs of the Guard, whom I have 
mentioned several times. He was with his Lieutenant and 
a private soldier — his whole company ! The remainder, 
as he expressed it, had melted. He had a Cossack horse, 
which he could not get through the crowd, I told him 
my miserable condition. For sole answer he gave me a 
large piece of white sugar soaked in brandy. Then we 
separated, he to climb down upon the Niemen with his 
horse, I, biting at my sugar, to begin my climb upwards 
for the third time. Hardly had I begun, when I heard 
someone calling me. It was Grangier, who had climbed 
down the bank and was looking for me. He asked why 
I had not followed him, and I told him the reason. On 
that he walked in front of me, dragging me by his musket, 
I holding on to the end of the barrel. It was with immense 
difficulty, with the help of Grangier and biting at my lump 
of brandied sugar, that at last, completely exhausted, I 
reached the top. 

Several of our friends were waiting for us — Leboude, 
sergeant-major ; Oudicte, sergeant-major ; Pierson, idem ; 
Poton, sergeant. The others had scattered, walking like 
us in groups. The certainty that on entering Prussia the 
conditions would be better for us influenced us all, a-nd 

269 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

began to make us indifferent to one another. From the 
spot where we were we could make out the Wilna road, 
some Russians marching upon Kowno, and others nearer ; 
but the presence of Marshal Ney with a handful of men 
prevented their advancing. A man came towards us, 
walking with difficulty, leaning on a pine staff. On 
coming up to us he exclaimed : ' Ah, per Dio santo ! I am 
not mistaken : these are friends !' 

We looked at him, and recognised him by his voice and 
accent as Pellicetti, a Milanese, former Velite-Grenadier. 
Three years before, he had left the Imperial Guard to 
enter that of the King of Italy as officer. Poor Pellicetti ! 
It was only by the remains of his cap that we could guess 
to what corps he belonged. He told us that three or four 
houses had been enough to accommodate the only corps 
remaining of Prince Eugene's army. He was waiting for 
one of his friends, who had a Cossack horse carrying the 
bit of baggage left to them. They had been separated on 
leaving Kowno. 

It was December 14th — it might have been about nine 
o'clock in the morning — the sky was gloomy, the cold 
bearable, and no snow was falling. We walked on with- 
out knowing where we were going, but on reaching the 
highroad we saw a great post with directions, informing 
the soldiers of the different corps of the road they must 
follow. 

We took the one inscribed for the Imperial Guard, but 
many marched straight in front of them without taking 
any notice. A few steps further on we saw five or six 
unfortunate soldiers looking like spectres, their faces 
emaciated and bedaubed with blood off their hands, with 
which they had been scratching in the snow for crumbs 
of biscuit fallen from a waggon which had just been 
pillaged. 

270 



FROM KOWNO TO ELBING 

We went on till about three in the afternoon. We had 
only walked three short leagues on account of Sergeant 
Poton, who seemed to be suffering a great deal. 

We had caught sight of a village to our right, about 
a quarter of a league from the road, and we decided to 
spend the night there. On reaching it we found two 
soldiers of the line, who had just killed a cow at the 
entrance to a stable. This was a good sign, and so we 
turned in. The peasant to whom the cow belonged came 
himself to cut some for us, in order to save as much of 
the meat as possible. He made a fire, and then brought 
two pots of water for soup. We had some clean straw 
and a good fire ; it was a very long time since we had 
been so happy. Shortly afterwards we ate our soup ; 
then we went to sleep. 

I was lying near Poton, who did nothing but groan. I 
asked him what was the matter. He said : ' My dear 
fellow, I am certain I shall not be able to go further !' 

Without knowing the reason why he talked like this (a 
serious accident, unknown to us all), I comforted him, 
telling him that after he had rested he would be much 
better ; but soon after fever came on, and throughout the 
night he did nothing but cry and wander in his mind. 
Several times during the night I found him writing in a 
memorandum-book, and tearing out the leaves. 

Once, when I was sleeping peacefully, I felt myself 
pulled by the arm. It was poor Poton, who said : 

' Dear friend, I am utterly unable to leave here — even 
to take a step — so you must do me a great service. I 
count on you, if you have the happiness to see France 
again ; if you do not, you must ask Grangier, on whom 
I count, as I do on you, to carry out my wishes. Here,' 
he continued, ' is a little packet of papers that you must 
send to my mother, to the address given, accompanied by 

271 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

a letter, in which you must describe the situation in which 
you left me, without, however, letting her lose all hope of 
seeing me again some day. Here is a silver spoon that I 
beg you will accept ; it is far better that you should have 
it than the Cossacks.' 

Then he handed me his little packet of papers, saying 
again that he counted on me. I promised him to do all 
he had just told me, but I little thought we should be 
obliged to leave him. 

On December 15th, when we prepared to depart, I 
repeated to our friends what Poton had told me. They 
thought he had lost heart, or that he had gone mad, so 
that each began to chaff him in his own way. 

But for sole answer the unhappy Poton showed us two 
hernias that he had had for a long time, a consequence of 
the repeated efforts he had made in climbing the bank at 
Kowno. We saw indeed that it was impossible for him 
to stir. Sergeant- Major Leboude thought it would be a 
good thing to leave him with the peasant who owned the 
house ; but before fetching him, as Poton had a good deal 
of money — above all, gold — we made haste to sew up his 
gold in the waist-band of his trousers. Then we called 
the peasant, and, as he spoke German, it was easy to make 
him understand us. We offered him five five-franc pieces, 
telling him he should have four times as much, and perhaps 
more, if he would take care of the sick man. He promised, 
swearing in the name of God, and that he would even go 
and fetch a doctor. Then, as time pressed, we took fare- 
well of our comrade. 

Before leaving, he made me promise not to forget ; we 
embraced him and left him. I do not know if the peasant 
kept his word, but never again did I hear Poton spoken 
of. According to all accounts, he was an excellent fellow, 
a true conirade, having received a good education, a rare 

272 



FROM KOWNO TO ELBING 

thing at that period. He was a Breton gentleman, belong- 
ing to one of the best families of the country. 

I religiously fulfilled my mission, for on my arrival at 
Paris, in the month of May, I sent all the papers to the 
address given. They contained his will, and the affecting 
farewell he had written during his fever. I took a copy 
of one, which I reproduce : 

' Adieu, bonne m^re, 
Mon amie ; 
Adieu, ma chere, 
Ma bonne Sophie ! 
Adieu, Nantes, ou j'ai requ la vie ; 
Adieu, belle France, ma patrie ; 
Adieu, mere chdrie : 
Je vais quitter la vie — 
Adieu !' 



For several years I gave up writing my Journal of the 
Russian Campaign — that is to say, I gave up putting those 
memoirs in order which I had written while a prisoner 
in 1813. A singular mania had come upon me; I doubted 
whether all that I had seen and endured with so much 
courage and patience in this terrible campaign was not 
the effect of my imagination. 

Nevertheless, when the snow is falling, and I find myself 
sitting with my friends — former soldiers of the Empire — 
of whom some are of the Imperial Guard, and who, like 
myself, have gone through that memorable campaign, it 
is always there that our memories take us ; and I have 
noticed that with them, as with me, indelible impressions 
are left. We speak of our glorious campaigns with pride. 

To-day my mother has just brought me some letters 
that I wrote to her during this campaign, and of which 
I was regretting the loss, so I am taking courage again. I 
must add to that the advice of friends who are making me 

273 T 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

promise to finish it. For my own part, it makes me live 
my life over again. One day, perhaps — who knows ? — my 
memoirs, although badly written, will interest those who 
read them. The great genius is no more, but his name 
will live for ever. Thus, taking my courage in both hands, 
I am going on ; so that, after me, my grandchildren, 
reading their grandfather's memoirs, will say, ' Grand- 
father was in the great battles with the Emperor Napoleon !' 
They will see how, in Spain, he ' dressed down ' the Prus- 
sians, the Austrians, the Russians, the English in Spain, 
and many others ; they will see, too, that grandfather did 
not always lie upon a bed of roses ; and although he may 
not have been one of the best Catholics in France, they 
will see that he often fasted, and more than once he fasted 
on a feast-day ! 

At seven o'clock on the morning of December 15th, we 
left the stable where we had spent the night, and walked 
in the direction of the road until we reached the spot 
where we had branched off the preceding evening ; there 
we halted. 

Grangier still had with him my little copper kettle. He 
carried it in front of him, fastened with a strap to his belt, 
for fear someone should make off with it, for a pan in 
which snow could be melted and something cooked was 
a precious article. Grangier returned it to me, for he 
foresaw that I might again be left behind, and might 
want it. He fastened it firmly to my knapsack. 

The sky was clear, but the cold bearable. We saw only 
a very few men upon the road ; from this we concluded 
that the evening before the greater number had gone on 
further, and in different directions. 

We caught sight of a column of men upon the road in 
the direction of Kowno, but we could not make out if 

274 



FROM KOWNO TO ELBING 

they were French or Russians ; so in this uncertainty 
we resumed our march. 

For an hour I walked fairly well, but at the end of this 
time a severe colic seized me, and I was forced to stop ; 
it was still the result of my Wilna poisoning. I set down 
this relapse to the broth that I had taken overnight, and 
before setting out in the morning. 

In this way I progressed till about three o'clock in the 
afternoon. I was now not very far from a forest that I 
had caught sight of some time before, and which I wanted 
to reach in order to pass the night there. 

I was no further away from it than a musket could 
carry, when, to the right of the road, I caught sight of a 
house where, around a large fire, several soldiers of the 
different army corps were gathered, the greater part of 
them being of the Imperial Guard. As I was tired, I 
stopped to warm and rest myself a little. Some of the men 
proposed that I should remain with them ; I accepted gladly. 

The cold had been bearable throughout the day, and 
was so still, and we thought one might feel easy about 
the enemy ; but some men coming up on the right of the 
road told us they had just caught sight of cavalry, and 
that they were sure it was Russian. ' And if it was the 
devil,' replied an old Chasseur of the Guard, * it would not 
prevent me establishing my headquarters here ! Friends, 
do as I am doing — load your weapons and fix bayonets.' We 
all quietly did as he said. ' And then,' he added, 'we can 
retreat to the wood. Upon my soul, it's a famous position !' 

On this, he went up to a horse that had been killed a 
little distance from the fire, cut a piece off it, and returned 
calmly to seat himself upon his knapsack near the fire, 
and roast his meat at the end of his sword. More than 
twenty soldiers were also roasting horseflesh, some sitting 
on their knapsacks, others going on their knees. 

275 T — 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

Opposite to the Chasseur of whom I have just spoken 
was a woman, sitting on a soldier's knapsack. Her head 
was in her hands, her elbows resting on her knees ; a 
soldier's gray overcoat over an old silk dress in tatters 
was all her clothing. On her head was a sheepskin cap, 
held in its place by a torn silk handkerchief tied under 
the chin. The Chasseur spoke to her : 

* Look here, Mother Madeleine !' 

She did not answer. Another man near her pushed 
her, saying : 

* They're speaking to you, mother.' 

* To me ?' she said. ' My name is Marie. What do you 
want ?' 

' A drink of rogomme, as at drill-time.' 

' Rogomme I You know very well I have none.' And 
she returned to her former position. 

Another woman who was near the fire wore on her 
head a schabraque, bordered with red cloth, cut into 
festoons and drawn around the neck with the cord of a 
Grenadier's bearskin, the tassels of which fell under her 
chin. She had also over her dress a Guard's blue over- 
coat. This woman, hearing the Chasseur's voice, looked 
up, asking who wanted spirits. 

* Ah ! is that you. Mother Gateau ?' answered the soldier. 
* It is I who am asking for spirits. I, Michaut. I dare 
say you are surprised to see me. Well, if anyone is 
more amazed than I am at meeting you, particularly 
schabraquee as you are, may the devil take him ! Even 
before the passage of the Berezina, thinking of you some- 
times, dear Mother Gateau, I imagined that the crows 
must long since have made afristotdlle a la neige of your 
old carcase !' 

'Wretch!' replied Mother Gateau; 'they will eat you 
defore they do me, you old drunkard ! Ah,' she continued, 
^ 276 



TWO CANTINIERES 

in a jeering tone, ' you must be wanting spirits indeed ! 
You've had to go without for three months; but very 
Hkely at Wilna, and yesterday at Kowno, you've taken 
a good dose : that's why you have so much tongue now. 
One thing astonishes me : that you're not dead of drink, 
Hke so many of the others we saw in the street. So many 
brave fellows left down yonder, and this good-for-nothing, 
this bad soldier, still lives 1' 

*Stop there. Mother Gateau!' replied the old soldier; 
' slang me as much as you like, but stop short of bad 
soldier ! Halte-ld /' 

Then, jeering all the time, he continued to eat the piece 
of horseflesh he was holding in his hand, and which he 
had ceased to bite at while answering the old cantiniere. 

Directly afterwards she began again : ' For two years 
now he's had a spite against me, ever since I wouldn't 
give him credit at the Military School. Ah ! if my poor 
husband were not dead — if a rascally ball had not cut him 
in two at Krasnoe ! . . .' 

And then she stopped. 

* It wasn't your husband ! You weren't married !' 

' Not married ! not married ! Haven't I been with him 
nearly five years, ever since the Battle of Eylau, and I'm 
not married ? What do you say to that, Marie ?' — turning 
to the other cantiniere. 

But Marie, whose marriage was of the same kind as 
Mother Gateau's, said nothing. 

The soldier asked Mother Gateau if she had nionte d la 
roue on the mountains at Wilna. 

* Ah !' she said, 'if I'd been strong enough, I shouldn't 
have missed the chance. I picked up some in the snow, 
but it hasn't done me much good. When you find your- 
self with rascals who respect nothing, we women can never 
feel safe. The evening after crossing the mountain, wher 

277 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

I reached our men's bivouac, I had still a little of the 
brandy I had brought from Wilna, so I gave it them for 
a place at the fire, and lay down to sleep on the snow 
near two soldiers of our regiment — or, rather, two thieves, 
for they cribbed half of my money. By good chance I 
was lying on a pocket they could not get to. Trust a 
comrade after that ! Happily, I still have enough to take 
me as far as Elbing. Once there, we shall find some way 
of beginning the campaign afresh. I want no more carts ; 
I will have two cognias, with baskets on their backs. We 
shall be luckier, perhaps. What do you say, Marie ?' 
Marie did not reply. 

* Marie,' said the old soldier, ' has had a second husband 
in a year, and if she likes I will marry her for a third.' 

* You, you old scamp !' answered Mother Gateau. 
* She'd be hard up to take you !' 

The Chasseur went up to Marie and offered her a piece 
of horseflesh. Marie took it, saying, ' Thank you, mon 
vieux.' 

' So that's settled,' he went on. ' On reaching Paris I 
will marry you ; I will make you happy.' 

For sole answer, Marie sighed, saying, ' How can you 
chaff an unhappy woman like me ?' 

' What I have just said,' the old Chasseur replied, ' is 
no joke, and to prove it I will offer Mother Gateau, without 
any malice, what I have just offered you — a little piece of 
" gee-gee " on my thumb.' 

As he spoke, he moved forward to offer it ; but Mother 
Gateau, seeing him coming, looked at him angrily, and 
said, ' Go to the devil ! I don't want anything of yours.' 

At this speech of Mother Gateau's, Marie, who was 
itting in front of me, lifted her head, saying that this was 
no time to quarrel. Then she stared at me from head to 
foot. 

278 



TWO CANTINIERES 

* I am not mistaken,' she said, addressing me by name 
— ' mon pays, is it you ?' 

' It is, Marie, really.' 

I had just recognised her, too, by her voice, not by her 
face, for poor Marie's freshness had disappeared ; cold, 
hardship, fire, and the smoke of the bivouac had made 
her unrecognisable. It was Marie, our former cantiniere, 
whom I thought dead, and whose deserted cart with two 
wounded I had come upon on the night of November 22nd. 
This is her history : 

Marie came from Namur; that is why she called me 
her pays. Her husband belonged to Liege, a fencing- 
master, and rather a bad lot. Marie was a good sort, 
thinking nothing of herself, retailing her goods to the 
soldiers — to those who had no money as well as to those 
who had. 

In every one of our battles she had shown herself most 
devoted in helping the wounded. One day she herself was 
wounded ; it did not prevent her from going on with her 
help, careless of the risks she was running, for the bullets 
and grape-shot were falling all round her. Besides all 
these good qualities, Marie was pretty ; she had a number 
of friends, too, and her husband was not jealous. 

In 181 1, while encamped before Almeida (Portugal), 
some months before leaving for the Russian campaign, 
the poor fellow must go plundering in a village. He 
entered a country-house, carried oif a clock not worth 
twenty francs, was foolish enough to bring it into camp, 
and was arrested. There were very severe orders against 
marauders, and General Roguet, our Commandant, court- 
martialed him. He was condemned to be shot within 
twenty-four hours. Marie therefore became a widow. In 
a regiment, particularly during a campaign, if a woman is 
pretty, she is not long without a husband ; so at the end 

279 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

of two months' mourning Marie was consoled and married 
again, as they marry in the army. 

Some months after, her new husband was transferred 
as non-commissioned officer to a regiment of the Young 
Guard, so she left us to follow him ; she had been with 
us for four years. 

In Russia she met with the fate of all the cantinieres in 
the army : she lost horses, carts, money, furs, and also 
her protector. As for herself, she had the luck to get 
back. Four months and a half later, at the Battle of 
Lutzen, May 2nd, 1813, chance brought us together; she 
had just been wounded in the right hand, while giving 
drink to a sick man. 

I learned afterwards that she returned to France, and 
reappeared in the Hundred Days. She was taken prisoner 
at the Battle of Waterloo, but, being a Belgian subject, 
she was released.* 

I asked Marie where her husband was. 

* Why, you know very well,' she answered, ' that he was 
killed at Krasnoe.' (I had not heard this before.) ' He 
was a good fellow ; I miss him very much.' 

Then she frowned and bent her head. A moment after- 
wards she raised it again, and, my eyes being still fixed 
upon her, she looked at me smiling, but it was a sad smile. 
I asked her what she was thinking about. 

' About eating, as you can guess. I used to have a 
friend who got me food ; now I eat whenever I have any- 
thing given me, or when I find something, and that doesn't 
happen often. There is only drink to be had.' 

And as she spoke she took a pinch of snow, and carried 
it to her mouth. I saw her rise with great difficulty to 

* I have learnt that Marie is still living, and is a member of the 
I egion of Honour, and decorated with the St. Helena medal. She 
resides at Namur. — Anthoi^s Note. Bourgogne died in 1867. 

280 



SERGEANT HUMBLOT 

set off on the march ; she gave me her hand, and said 
' Farewell.' I noticed that she was worn out with fatigue 
and privation ; that she walked with difficulty, leaning on 
a stick. Mother Gateau followed her, sheepskin on head, 
swearing and mumbling between her teeth. I concluded 
that it was still about the old Chasseur. 

Just then there might have been about forty of us, and 
our number was continuall}' increasing. I caught sight 
of Humblot, one of our sergeants. Seeing me, he asked 
what I was doing there. I answered that I was resting, 
and considering whether I should not do well to pass the 
night where I was, and start the first thing in the morning. 

Humblot, a good fellow who liked me, observed, first, 
that the weather was bearable ; then what advantage it 
would be to me to have crossed the forest : for, he said, 
on the other side we should find houses where we could 
spend the night. The next day early we could reach 
Wilbalen, a small town, from three to four leagues distant. 
There we should find our comrades, and be able to buy 
the necessaries of life. In fact, he said so much that I 
took up musket and knapsack and set off with Sergeant 
Humblot. While walking, Humblot told me that, although 
we were in Pomeranian Prussia, it was not wise to walk 
alone or lag behind, for several thousand Cossacks had 
crossed the Niemen on the ice. 

Then he told me that he had left Kowno the day before 
with many others who had not troubled about anything, 
for Marshal Ney was still there to keep the Russians off 
the town, with a rear-guard composed of Germans and 
some French. The Germans, he told me, had formed part 
of the garrison of Kowno, and were in excellent condition, 
having wanted for nothing ; but they were poor soldiers, 
and but for the few French among them, they would have 
thrown down their arms and fled. 

281 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

' I am going to tell you,' he went on, ' what happened 
to me yesterday, and you will see if I am not right in 
persuading you to get out of this cursed country as soon 
as possible. 

' After having crossed the Niemen and come within a 
quarter of a league of the town, we saw, some distance off, 
more than 2,000 mounted Cossacks and others. We 
halted to decide what was to be done, and also to wait for 
those who were behind. Shortly afterwards we found 
ourselves about 400 men strong, of all equipments. We 
formed into a column, so as, if need be, to re-form into a 
square. Some officers who were among us took the com- 
mand. Twenty-two Poles afterwards joined us. About 
fifty of the strongest men, who possessed good weapons, 
took up a position as sharp-shooters, in front and on our 
flanks. 

* We marched resolutely upon the cavalry, who at the 
approach of the sharp-shooters drew off to right and left 
of the way. On reaching the level of the Russians, the 
column halted to wait for some men still in the rear. 
Only a few would be able to rejoin us, it seemed, for 
a party of Cossacks detached themselves to cut off those 
farthest off. 

'A man of the name of Boucsin,* who played the big 
drum in our band, was in the rear, and was doing his 
utmost to join the column with (marvellous to relate !) his 
drum still on his back, and in his hands a bag of five-franc 
pieces. This load hindered him from getting along quickly; 
he was attacked by the Cossacks at fifty paces to the rear 
and to the left of the column. He received a lance-thrust 
between the shoulders, and fell full length into the snow, 
the drum being thrown over his head. Two Cossacks 

* Boucsin is the slang for noise {tapage). In this case the drummer's 
nickname was his real one. 

282 



COSSACKS 

instantly dismounted to strip him, but a Polish officer and 
three men ran upon them, took one prisoner with his 
horse, and freed the drummer of his instrument, which 
he left in the field. He got off with a lance-thrust and 
half of his money, which he distributed among those who 
had saved his life. 

' After this the column set off again to the shouts of 
" Long live the Emperor !" with the Cossack and his 
horse in the middle of them.' 

Humblot had barely finished Jiis story before I was 
forced to stop, in the same trouble again. Meantime he 
walked slowly, so that I could catch up with him. When 
I resumed my march, I found a great crowd preventing 
me from getting along. I regained the road, but had 
hardly done so, when I heard repeated shouts : * Look out 
for the Cossacks !' I imagined it was a false alarm, when 
I caught sight of several officers, armed with muskets, who 
halted and bravely stationed themselves in the road, facing 
the noise, and crying out : ' Never mind ! Let the dogs come 
on !'* I looked behind me ; they were so close that one ot 
the horses touched me — three were ahead, others followed. 

I had only just time to fling myself into the wood, where 
I thought I should be in safety ; but the three Cossacks 
entered it almost at the same moment, and, unhappily, 
just at this spot the wood was very open. I tried to get 
further in, but by a bad stroke of luck one of my attacks 
came on. Imagine my position ! I wanted to stop, but 
it was impossible, two of the three Cossacks being only a 
few steps away. Happily, a few steps further on the trees 
were closer together. The Cossacks were delayed by 
them, while I went on at the same pace ; but, stopped 
short by some branches embedded in the snow, I fell full 

* Colonel Richard, ex-commanding officer at Condd, was one among 
them. He and I have often spoken of the incident. — Author's Note, 

283 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

length, my head remaining buried. I tried to rise, but I 
felt myself held by one leg. I feared one of my Cossacks 
was gripping me, but it was only briars and thorns. 
Making a last effort, I rose and looked behind me. The 
Cossacks had halted ; two were looking for a spot wide 
enough to get their horses through. Meanwhile, I dragged 
myself on with extreme difficulty. 

A little further on I was stopped by a fallen tree, but I was 
so weak that I found it impossible to lift my legs over it, 
and I was obliged to sit down. 

I had not been there five minutes, when I saw the 
Cossacks dismount and fasten their horses to a bush. I 
thought they were at last coming to take m<e, and I had 
already tried to make an effort to save myself, when I saw 
that the two were busying themselves with a third, who 
had received a furious sword- stroke on the face. The 
wounded man lifted up a piece of his cheek that was 
hanging down on to his shoulder, while the others got 
ready a handkerchief, which they passed under his chin 
and tied on the top of his head. 

All this took place about ten paces away from me, the 
Cossacks looking at me while they talked. 

When they had finished pasting their comrade's face, 
they bore down directly on me. P3ut now, thinking 
myself lost, I made a last effort, mounted the tree-trunk, 
took up my loaded musket, and determined to fire on the 
first who came near. I had only the two men to deal 
with, as the third, after being bandaged, seemed to suffer 
like one of the damned, walking up and down, and bang- 
ing the hind-quarters of his horse with his fists. 

Seeing my fighting position, the two Cossacks stopped, 
and made signs that I was to go to them. I understood 
that they meant no ill towards me, but I remained as I 
was, all the same. 

284 



COSSACKS 

I heard on my left, in the direction of the road, shouts 
and oaths, accompanied by musket-shots, which made my 
enemies uneasy, for I saw them looking frequently in the 
direction of the sound. I hoped they would leave me, for 
the sake of their own safety ; but a fourth savage now 
came up, as if making his escape. Seeing some of his 
comrades, he then caught sight of me, and, on account of 
the underwood, dismounted, fastened his horse up beside 
the others, and, pistol in hand, advanced towards me, 
under cover of the trees ; the two others followed in the 
same fashion. It hardly needed all that ceremony for 
vanquishing me, but, as luck would have it, at that 
moment the shouts on the right grew louder, accompanied 
by shots ; the horses, terrified, and not being very securely 
fastened, escaped in the direction of the road, and the 
Cossacks set off to pursue them. 

Considering my deplorable condition, I felt it would be 
impossible to walk further without changing my clothes. 
It may be remembered that in a portmanteau found on 
the mountain of Ponari I had some shirts and white cotton 
breeches — clothes belonging to an army commissary. 

Having opened my knapsack, I drew out a shirt, and 
hung it on my musket ; then the breeches, which I placed 
beside me on the tree. I took off my jacket and overcoat, 
and my waistcoat with the quilted yellow silk sleeves that 
I had made out of a Russian lady's skirt at Moscow. I 
untied the shawl which was wrapped round my body, and 
my trousers fell about my heels. As for my shirt, I had 
not the trouble of taking it off, for it had neither back nor 
front ; I pulled it off in shreds. And there I was, naked, 
except for a pair of wretched boots, in the midst of a wild 
forest, at four o'clock in the afternoon, with eighteen to 
twenty degrees of cold, for the north wind had begun to 
blow hard again. 

285 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

On looking at my emaciated body, dirty, and consumed 
with vermin, I could not restrain my tears. At last, sum- 
moning the little strength that remained, I set about my 
toilet. With snow and the rags of my old shirt I washed 
myself to the best of my power. Then I drew on my 
new shirt of fine longcloth, embroidered down the front. 
I got into the little calico breeches as quickly as I could, 
but I found them so short that even my knees were not 
covered, and my boots only reaching half-way up my leg, 
all this part was bare. Finally, I put on my yellow silk 
waistcoat, my riding-jacket, my overcoat, over this my 
belts and collar; and there I was, completely attired, 
except for my legs. After this I got down from my tree- 
trunk, and going a hundred steps or so, I caught sight of 
two people, a man and a woman, and I recognised that 
they were Germans. They seemed to be frightened. I 
asked them if they would like to come with me, but in a 
trembling voice the man answered ' No,' and, pointing in 
the direction of the road, he uttered the single word 
' Cossack !' 

They were a canteen man and his wife, belonging to the 
Rhine Confederation, probably one of the Kowno garrison, 
who were following up the retreat, and being, like myself, 
surprised in the forest by the noise, had taken to flight. 
The woman advised her husband to join me, but the man 
would not consent, and, in spite of all I could say to him, 
I was obliged, to my regret, to go on alone. 

After having wandered haphazard for about half an 
hour, I stopped to take my bearings, for night was coming 
on. In this part of the forest there was a great deal of 
snow — neither track nor beaten road, nor even a trace of 
one. Sometimes I sat down to rest upon trees lying 
uprooted by the great winds. I had to grasp at the twigs 
of the bushes in fear of falling, I was so weak. My legs 

286 



COSSACKS 

were buried in the snow above my boots, so that they got 
filled. However, I was not cold — on the contrary, drops 
of sweat fell down my face ; but my legs refused to carry 
me. In consequence of the efforts I was making to drag 
myself out of the snow, in which I sank often up to my 
knees, I felt an extraordinary lassitude in my thighs. I 
will not attempt to describe what I suffered. For more 
than an hour I was walking in the dark, lighted only by 
the stars. Not succeeding in getting out of the forest at 
that point nearest to the road, and able to do no more, 
exhausted, breathless, I resolved to rest. I propped 
myself up against the trunk of a tree and remained motion- 
less. A moment afterwards I heard a dog barking. I 
looked in the direction of the sound, and saw a light 
shining. Sighing hopefully, and summoning all the 
strength I had, I turned towards this new quarter. But 
thirty paces further on were four horses, and, seated around 
a fire, four Cossacks. Three peasants were there too. 
Amongst them were the canteen man and his wife whom I 
had met, taken, no doubt, by those Cossacks who had 
wanted to make off with me. I easily recognised the one 
with the sabre-cut across the face, for I was not twenty 
steps away. 

I watched them for some time, wondering if it would 
not be better to go and give myself up rather than die like 
a brute in the midst of the wood. The light of the fire 
tempted me ; but for some unknown reason I did the 
exact opposite, and drew back. Still I watched them, 
and noticed that several earthen pots were around the fire. 
They had straw to lie on, and the horses had hay to eat. 

The number of trees made it impossible for me to 
follow the exact direction I wished to take. I was 
obliged to bear to the left, fortunately for me, for, after 
taking a few steps, I found the forest clearer, but the 

287 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

snow in greater quantities, so that I fell several times. 
One last time I rose and reproached God for my mis- 
fortunes, who was yet watching over me. I now found 
myself at the end of the forest and on the high road. 
There I fell upon my knees and thanked Him against 
whom I had just rebelled. 

I walked straight on. The road was good, and no 
doubt the right one ; but the wind, which I had not felt 
in the forest, was too keen for my bare legs. My coat, 
being long, kept off a little of the cold. 

Oddly enough, I was not hungry. I do not know 
whether the excitement I had been through since the 
Cossacks' attack were the cause, or if it were the effect of 
my sickness, but since leaving the stable where I had had 
some soup and meat I had no desire to eat. However, 
fancying that there ought to be a piece of meat still left in 
my bag, I searched for it, and was lucky enough to find it, 
and, although hardened by the frost, I ate it as I went 
along. My meal over, I raised my head, and saw two 
men on horseback on my left, apparently advancing with 
caution, and further on, along the road, was a man who 
seemed to be getting along better than I was. I doubled 
my pace to join him, but all at once he disappeared. 

Looking to the left, I caught sight of a little hut, and 
went in. But hardly was I inside, when I heard the click 
of a musket, and a deep voice said : 

* Who goes there ?' 

* A friend,' I answered, and added : * A soldier of the 
Imperial Guard !' 

* Ah, ah !' came the answer. ' Where the devil do you 
come from, comrade, that I haven't met you while I've 
been walking all alone ?' 

I related to him a part of what had happened to me 
since the Cossacks' attack, of which he knew nothing. 

288 



LUCK 

We resumed our march. I saw that my new comrade 
was an old Chasseur of the Guard, and that he carried 
on his knapsack and around his neck a pair of cloth 
trousers that apparently were of no use to him, but 
could be of the greatest benefit to me. I begged him to 
let me buy them of him, and showed him the naked state 
of my legs. 

* My poor comrade !' he said, * I would willingly oblige 
you if I could, but I must tell you that the trousers are 
burnt in several places, and are full of great holes.' 

' Never mind that ; let me have them. They may 

perhaps save my life.' 

He pulled them off his knapsack, saying : * Take them.' 
Then I took two five-franc pieces from my bag, asking 

him if it was enough. 

* Quite,' he answered. * Make haste and let us be off, 
for I see two men on horseback coming down this way. 
They may be Cossack scouts.' 

While he was speaking I had put on the trousers — I 
kept them in place as I had the former ones, with the 
shawl wrapped round my body — and we set off. We 
hadn't taken a hundred steps before my companion, who 
walked faster than I did, was already twenty yards in 
front of me. I saw him stoop and pick something up. 
At first I couldn't distinguish what it was, but coming to 
the spot, I saw a dead man, and recognised him as a 
Grenadier of the Royal Dutch Guard that, from the 
beginning of the campaign, had formed part of the 
Imperial Guard. He had neither knapsack nor bearskin, 
but he still had his musket, cartridge-pouch, sabre, and 
great black gaiters on his legs, reaching above the knee. I 
took the gaiters and put them over my trousers to cover the 
holes. Then I set off walking again, rather faster than 
usual, as if the dead man were running after me. 

289 \f 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

Meanwhile the Chasseur had gone on, and I could not 
see him. Soon afterwards I came to a great building, 
and recognising it as a posting-house, I made up my 
mind to pass the night there. An infantry soldier, the 
sentinel, called out : ' Who goes there ?' 

' A friend,' I answered, and entered. 

The first thing I saw was about thirty men, some of 
them sleeping, others cooking horseflesh and rice, round 
several fires. To the right were three men, sitting round 
a bowl of rice, I sank down beside them. After a 
moment I tried to speak to one of them, pulling him 
by his coat. He looked at me without a word. Then, 
in a piteous tone, I said in a low voice, that the others 
might not hear : ' Comrade, I entreat you, let me eat some 
spoonfuls of rice. I will pay you. You will do me a great 
service ; you will save my life.' 

At the same time I offered him two pieces of five francs, 
which he took, saying, ' Eat.' 

He handed me his spoon and an earthenware plate, and 
also gave up his place near the fire. For my ten francs 
there were about fifteen spoonfuls of rice still left. 

I looked about me when I had eaten to see if the old 
Chasseur were there. I discovered him near a hayrack, 
busy cutting up a bearskin to make ear-lappets of. This 
bearskin belonged to the Dutch Grenadier ; he had picked 
it up when I saw him stoop. I went over to him to rest, 
but hardly was I stretched on the straw when the sentinel 
exclaimed, ' Look out !' saying that he had caught sight 
of Cossacks. 

Immediately everybody jumped up and seized their 
arms. A shout was heard, ' A friend — Frenchman !' 

Two cavalrymen entered the barn, and, dismounting, 
showed themselves. But several began questioning them, 
in particular the old Chasseur, who said : 

290 



ADVENTURES OF A SERGEANT 

* How is it you are on horseback, and dressed like a 
Cossack ? Probably to rob and pillage our sick and 
wounded.' 

' Nothing of the sort,' replied one of the two troopers ; 
• when you see us you will believe it. We can prove it, 
and when we are settled we will tell you all about it.' 

The speaker, after having tied up the two horses and 
given them some straw, of which there was plenty in the 
barn, returned to his companion, who seemed to walk 
with difficulty, and, taking him by the arm, led him up to 
a place beside me. After eating some bread and drinking 
brandy, and having also given a pull to the old soldier 
and myself, the man who had spoken before began : 

' Yesterday evening I saved my brother from the 
Cossacks, who had wounded and taken him prisoner. I 
must tell you about it, as it is a most wonderful story. 

* The evening before the arrival at Kowno, dying of 
cold and hunger, and spent with fatigue, I wandered from 
the road with two officers of the 71st, armed, like myself, 
with muskets, to find some village in which we could 
spend the night. But after having walked about half a 
league, we were able to go no further without running the 
risk of perishing in the snow, so we decided to pass the 
night in a deserted, tumble-down house, where, most 
luckily, we found both wood and straw, and, as I still 
had some flour left from Wilna, we made a good fire and 
had some broth. 

' The next day, early in the morning, we set about 
finding our way back to the high road ; but just as we 
were about to leave the house we were surrounded by 
about fifteen Cossacks. We stopped in front of the door 
to reconnoitre them ; they made signs to us to approach, 
but we did the opposite. We re-entered the house, closed 
the door, and, opening the two little windows, began a 

291 u— 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

fire which made the Cossacks fly. At long musket-shot 
they stopped, but we had reloaded our weapons and left 
the house, firing a second volley, at which a horse and 
rider fell. The latter freed himself of the horse and left 
it. We set off at our quickest pace, but had hardly taken 
fifty steps before we saw them bearing down upon us. 

' Directly afterwards they went to the right to pick up a 
portmanteau off the horse we had shot. Soon they were 
lost to sight, and we gained the road to Kowno, which we 
were to reach that same day. We were now in the midst 
of over 6,000 stragglers, and, as it always happened amid 
this rabble, I was separated from my comrades. 

' I walked all day, and it was hardly dark when I found 
myself near the Niemen, and about a league from Kowno. 
As there were houses to be seen on the other side, I 
decided to cross the river on the ice, so as to find a shelter, 
as I did the night before. 

' On gaining the bank, I saw two or three houses about 
half a league to the right, where I was received fairly well 
by the peasants, and passed a quiet night. The next 
morning at daylight I took to the road, to rejoin the 
column on the other side of Kowno ; but hardly had I 
gone a couple of hundred steps, when I was suddenly 
surrounded by a dozen Cossacks, who, without doing me 
any harm, or even thinking of disarming me, made me 
march in front of them in exactl}- the direction I had 
wanted to take. I was a prisoner, though I could not 
realize it. 

* After an hour's walking, we came to a village. There 
I was relieved of my arms and of my money, but I was 
lucky enough to save some pieces of gold hidden in the 
lining of my waistcoat. I took off my shako and covered 
my head with a cap of black sheepskin I had found. I 
noticed that the Cossacks were laden with gold and silver, 

292 



ADVENTURES OF A SERGEANT 

and that they did not pay much attention to me, so I 
decided to take the first opportunity of escaping. 

* It might have been about ten o'clock when we left the 
village. We met another detachment of Cossacks escort- 
ing prisoners, some of whom were men belonging to the 
Imperial Guard, taken in the sortie from Kowno. I was 
placed among these. 

' We marched, with frequent stoppages, till about three 
o'clock. I noticed that the leader was uncertain of the 
way, not knowing the country. Before nightfall we had 
reached a little village, and were put into a barn, where 
we all went through a very minute inspection. I trembled 
for my gold, but I trembled for nothing. 

' The search was barely over when I heard my name 
called by a prisoner unknown to me. " Here," I 
answered. Another prisoner at the far end answered too. 
Then, m.oving in the direction whence the voice had 
come, I asked who answered to the name of Dassonville. 
" I !" replied my brother, whom you see here. Think of 
our surprise on finding each other ! We embraced, weep- 
ing. He told me that he had been wounded in the leg on 
November 28th, near the Berezina bridge. I told him my 
plan was to make our escape before they forced us to re- 
cross the Niemen ; for being now in Pomerania, a country 
belonging to Prussia, we must take the opportunity that 
offered. 

' The peasants brought us potatoes and water, a piece 
of good luck we were far from expecting. They were 
distributed among us — four for each of us. We threw 
ourselves upon them ravenously, and almost all declared 
that just then it was better to be a prisoner eating 
potatoes than to be free, but dying of hunger and cold on 
the high road. But I said that, all the same, it would be 
better to get out of their clutches. " Who knows," I said, 

293 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

"that they will not take us to Siberia!" I showed them 
a possibility of escape, for, close to where I was lying 
beside my brother, I had found out a place where, by 
taking down two boards, we could get out easily. They 
agreed with me ; but an hour afterwards, as ill-luck would 
have it, we were told we must leave. Night had come 
on ; many of the men, worn out with fatigue, had fallen 
asleep. The Cossacks, seeing their orders were not 
obeyed quickly, struck those still lying down with the 
knout. They would have struck my brother, who could 
not rise quickly enough because of his wound, but I placed 
myself before him and warded off the blows, meanwhile 
helping him to rise, and, instead of leaving the barn like 
the others, we hid ourselves behind the door, and were 
lucky enough not to be seen. 

* The Cossacks and all the prisoners were gone ; we did 
not dare to breathe. Three Cossacks on horseback 
crossed the barn at a gallop, looking to right and left to 
see if there was anyone left. When they had gone, I 
dragged -myself along to peep outside; I saw a peasant 
coming, and crept back to my place. He entered the 
barn on the side opposite to us ; we had just time to cover 
ourselves with straw. Very luckily for us, he did not see 
us, and shut the two doors. We were now alone. 

* It might have been six o'clock. We rested for another 
hour, and then I rose to open the door ; but I couldn't 
manage it, so I had to return to my first project, that 
of getting out by removing the two boards. This I did. 
I told my brother to wait for me, and got out. 

' I went as far as the entrance to the village. At the 
first house I saw a light coming through a window, and, 
peeping in, there were three great Cossack rascals count- 
ing money at a table, a peasant holding a light for them. 

* I was just going back to rejoin my brother in the barn, 

294 



ADVENTURES OF A SERGEANT 

when I saw one of them make a movement towards the 
door, open it, and come out. Luckily for me, a sledge 
laden with wood was near, so I lay flat on my stomach in 
the snow behind it. 

* The Cossack then re-entered the house and closed the 
door. Instantly I rose to fly, but, afraid of being seen, 
instead of crossing in front of the window, I took a turn 
to the right. I hadn't gone ten steps, when a door opened, 
and to escape notice I crept into a stable, and hid myself 
under the trough from which the horses were eating. I 
had hardly done so, when a peasant entered with a lantern, 
followed by a Cossack. I thought it was all over with me. 

' The Cossack was carrying a portmanteau ; he fastened 
it upon his horse and went out, closing the door. 

' I was just going myself, when I thought of taking a 
horse with me. As quickly as possible, I seized the one 
with the portmanteau, but, in turning his head round to 
get him out of the stable, something fell on my shoulder ; 
it was the Cossack's lance, propped up against his horse. 
I took it away with me for defence, and went out. I 
reached the barn, helped my brother to mount, and, taking 
the bridle in my hand, proceeded in the direction of the 
road. 

* When we had gone a couple of hundred steps, I looked 
round to see if anything was coming. I handed my brother 
the Cossack's lance, and covered him with the great 
camel's-hair cape that I found on the horse. After half 
an hour's walking, we reached the road ; then, turning in 
the direction of Gumbinnen, we saw some peasants busy 
removing the wheels of a deserted waggon. To avoid 
passing near them, we took a road to our left, leading to the 
entrance of a village. We wished we could have avoided 
the village, so fearful were we of falling again into the 
enemy's clutches. God only knows what would have 

295 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

happened to us, for, seeing us with a horse and weapon 
belonging to one of their people, they would have made 
sure we had killed the owner. 

* We had stopped to consult, when we heard a noise 
behind us ; we thought at once of flight, but there was no 
chance, for the masses of snow on each side of the road 
prevented our getting into the ditches. Our situation 
became critical, and I did not dare tell my fears to my 
brother on account of his wound. 

* We were starting again straight on, when we saw in 
front of us the cause of our fright — some men only a few 
steps away from us. They came to a stop, calling to us 
in German : " Good-evening, friend Cossacks !" 

* '* Listen," I said to my brother : "you are a Cossack, 
and I am your prisoner. You can speak a little German, 
so only keep cool." 

* As he had only a dilapidated sergeant's cap upon his 
head, I exchanged it for mine, which was like a Cossack's. 
We recognised these people for the peasants we had seen 
a while before busy round the wheel on the road. There 
were four of them, dragging two of the wheels behind them 
with ropes. My brother inquired if there were any fellow- 
Cossacks in the village. They said, " No." 

**'Then," said he, " take me to the burgomaster, for I 
am cold and hungry, besides being wounded and obliged 
to look after this French prisoner." 

* One of them then told us that they had been waiting 
for the Cossacks since morning, and that they would have 
done well to come, for more than thirty Frenchmen had 
lodged with them the previous night, and they had almost 
all of them been disarmed as they were leaving. 

* On hearing this we wished ourselves at the devil ; but 
just then some more peasants came up, who, seeing me 
being led by a Cossack, threatened and insulted me. They 

296 



ADVENTURES OF A SERGEANT 

were reproved by an old man, who, I learned afterwards, 
was a Protestant minister, the cure of the place. 

' We were led before the burgomaster, who made my 
brother exceedingly welcome, telling him that he should 
be quartered with him, and his horse taken care of; but 
as for the Frenchman, he would have him sent to the 
prison. 

* " That is to say," he said, " if you do not want to 
keep him about you as a servant." 

* " I would like that," answered my brother, " especially 
as I am wounded, and this Frenchman is a Surgeon- Major. 
He will dress my leg." 

'"Surgeon-Major!" repHed the burgomaster; "that is 
lucky, for we have here a good fellow in the village who 
had his arm broken this morning by a Frenchman. The 
Surgeon-Major will set his arm for him." 

' We were taken into a very warm room, where there 
was a bed intended for the Cossack ; but he refused it, 
and asked for some straw for himself, and some for me, 
which he had put to one side so as not to awaken suspicion. 
For brother Cossack they brought bread, lard, sauer-kraut, 
beer, and gin ; potatoes and water for me. The burgo- 
master showed my brother a quantity of weapons in a 
corner of the room ; they had belonged to the Frenchmen 
whom the peasants had disarmed that morning. There 
were pistols, carbines, five or six muskets, as well as 
cavalry swords and several packets of cartridges. 

' While we were at our meal, a peasant with his arm in 
a sling entered the room, accompanied by a woman ; it 
was the man with the broken arm. He came and sat 
down near me, so I decided to go in for bravado. I asked 
for linen bandages, and a little splint of pine-wood. The 
arm was broken clean between the wrist and the elbow. 
During the last five years, I had seen so many operations 

297 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

that I did not hesitate to set to work. There was no 
wound to be seen. I signed to a peasant to hold the sick 
man by the shoulders, and to the wife to hold his hand. 
Then I set, and pretty well, too, I think, the broken bone, 
just as I should have set a piece of wood. To begin with, 
I felt my way a little, while the devil of a fellow shouted 
and made villainous faces. Then I applied compresses, 
sprinkled with schnapps ; afterwards four splints that I 
bound up with linen bandages. The man felt better, and 
told me I was a good fellow. His wife and the burgo- 
master complimented me, and I was able to breathe. 
They gave me a large glass of gin to reward me. 

' But this was not all. The burgomaster gave me to 
understand I must go and see a woman who for the last 
few days had been suffering horribly ; it was a case of a 
3^oung woman in labour. They had been to Kowno for 
an accoucheur, but all was in such disorder because of 
the Russians and French that one could not be found. 

' " As a general thing," he said, " it is a service the old 
women render, but it seems this is a complicated case." 

' I tried to make the burgomaster understand that, 
having lost my surgical instruments, I could undertake 
no operation ; that, moreover, I was no accoucheur — I 
understood nothing about it. But I couldn't make myself 
understood; they thought it was simply ill-will on my 
part. I was obliged to go. Conducted by two peasants 
and three women, I was led to the end of the village. I 
do not know if it was my having left such a warm room, 
but I was as cold as death. Finally we reached the place. 

* I was taken into a room where I found three old 
women, just like the three Fates; they were round a 
young woman lying on a bed, who was shrieking every 
now and again a great deal louder than the man with the 
broken arm. One of the old women took me up to the 

298 



ADVENTURES OF A SERGEANT 

sick woman, and a second lifted the coverlet. Imagine 
my embarrassment ! Saying nothing, I looked at the three 
old crones, to gather from their looks what they wanted 
me to do. But they were waiting likewise, looking at me 
to see what I intended. The sick woman, too, had her 
eyes fixed upon me. Finally, I understood one of the old 
women to say I must find out whether the child still lived. 
I made up my mind, and placed my great paw, as cold 
as ice, on the patient. The touch made her leap up and 
utter a scream enough to make the house shake. This 
cry was followed by a second ; the three old cronies seized 
her, and in less than five minutes all was over — a Prussian 
subject was born. 

' Then, proud of my fresh cure, I rubbed my hands ; 
and as I knew what was usual in my village under similar 
circumstances, the infant being bathed in warm water and 
wine, I ordered some to be brought in a basin. Afterwards I 
asked for some schnapps. They gave me a bottleful of it. 
I tasted it several times ; then, taking a piece of linen 
which I wetted in the warm water, I sprinkled the 
schnapps upon it, and applied the compress to the 
patient, who was feeling extremely comfortable, and who 
thanked me, pressing my hand. 

* I left, escorted by the two men who had brought me, 
and by two of the old duennas. I was reconducted before 
the burgomaster, and praised up to the skies. My Cossack 
brother had been in a fearful fright, but was delighted to 
see me again. 

* I had still one wounded man to patch up, and that 
was himself. I bathed the wound with warm water, and 
dressed it with a little more knowledge of what I was 
about. We were left alone. When I was certain that 
everyone was asleep, I picked out two pairs of pistols, as 
well as a beautiful infantry sword, and two lots of cartridges 

299 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

of the right size for our pistols. We took the precaution 
to load these at once. Mine were hidden while awaiting 
the time of our departure, and then we rested. 

* In the morning they brought us something to eat. 
This time I was treated to the same food as the Cossack. 
While we were breakfasting, the burgomaster compli- 
mented me on my skill, asked me if I would like to remain 
with them, and said that he would give me one of his 
daughters in marriage. I told him that that could not 
be, as I was already married and had children. Then, 
turning to the Cossack, he asked him in what direction 
he was going. " I am going to rejoin my brother and my 
comrades, who are following the road to the town ; I do 
not remember its name, but it is the first I should come 
to along the road." " I know," said the burgomaster, 
"you mean Wilbalen. Well, we will go together. I will 
guide you to a place about a league from here, where 
you will find more than 200 Cossacks ; for I have just 
received orders to send there everything in the way of hay 
and flour, and to follow afterwards myself. We will set 
out in half an hour. I will get your horse ready with my 
own." 

' Hardly had he gone from the room, when I thrust my 
pistols into my belt, and about thirty cartridges into my 
pockets. My Cossack brother fastened on the sword I 
had chosen for him, and also put a pair of pistols in his 
belt. A moment afterwards they came to tell us that all 
was ready for our departure. I took the Cossack's port- 
manteau, and we went out. 

' We found the burgomaster at the posting-station in 
travelling dress. He wore a long coat lined with fine 
sheepskin, a fur cap, and boots of the same. His servant 
wore a sheepskin coat. I helped my brother the Cossack 
to mount ; and, as I was fastening on the portmanteau, I 

300 



ADVENTURES OF A SERGEANT 

said softly, so as not to be heard, that, should the oppor- 
tunity offer, he must seize the burgomaster's horse and 
coat, and that of his servant as well, so that by means of 
these disguises we might escape ; and that, in our present 
position, we must act promptly, as it meant life or death. 

* We set off on our march, the servant in front as guide, 
I next and between the two on horseback, as a prisoner 
would. A little before the end of the village we took a 
road to the left, and after a quarter of an hour's walking 
we reached a little pine-wood. While crossing it, I thought 
of putting my project into execution. After we had crossed 
the wood, I looked in front of me and to right and left, 
looking out for anything likely to harm us. Seeing nothing, 
I strode to the burgomaster's side, and seizing the horse's 
bridle with one hand, and presenting a pistol with the 
other, I ordered him to dismount. As you may imagine, 
he was terribly taken aback ; he looked at the Cossack as 
if to tell him to run me through the body. Meanwhile 
the servant, with a great stick, rushed to knock me down ; 
but, without letting go of the horse's bridle, I struck him 
such a violent blow across the chest with the butt-end 
of the pistol that I sent him sprawling yards off, and 
threatened to kill him if he made the slightest movement 
towards getting up. 

' While this was happening, my brother told the burgo- 
master that he had better dismount ; but he was so stupefied 
that the order had to be repeated several times. Finally 
he dismounted, and I gave his animal to my brother to 
hold. 

' Immediately I took off the servant's boots, coat, and 
cap. Then, taking off my own cloak and coat and my 
cap, I threw them down on him, forcing him to put on 
the coat, so that in his turn he looked like the prisoner. 

' Imagine the burgomaster's face at seeing his servant 

301 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

dressed up in such a fashion ! But that was not all. 
Telling my brother, who had dismounted, to keep an 
eye on the servant, I effected a change of costume in his 
master, who, at my invitation and without much trouble, 
gave me his overcoat, boots, and cap. I gave him in 
exchange my coat and his servant's cap. Then I made 
my brother put on the servant's coat and boots, and when, 
he was completely attired and remounted, and in a position 
to mount guard over our two prisoners, I dressed myself 
in my turn in the burgomaster's clothes. Mounting his 
horse, I took possession of his sword, and we set off at 
a gallop, leaving our two Prussians thunderstruck, and 
probably not knowing whether my brother was really a 
Cossack or not. We did not feel comfortable, either, for, 
although disguised, we were afraid of falling into the 
clutches of the Cossacks of whom the burgomaster had 
spoken before our setting out. 

' After advancing at a gallop for about ten minutes we 
reached a little village, where the inhabitants, on seeing 
us, began shouting out : " Hurrah ! hurrah ! Our friends 
the Cossacks ! Hurrah !" 

' They told us that our comrades had slept at a large 
village a quarter of a league away, and that they had left 
to cut off the French in their retreat before they should 
have reached the wood which intersected the route. They 
wanted to make us dismount and drink, but as we were 
not easy in our minds, we were satisfied with some glasses 
of schnapps without dismounting. Then my brother 
shouted " Hurrah !" and we decamped, carrying off the 
bottle of schnapps, and accompanied by the hurrahs of 
the whole population. 

' It might have been about three o'clock when we saw 
the wood in front of us and heard firing. A fight was 
going on between the French and the Russian cavalry 

302 



ADVENTURES OF A SERGEANT 

near a house on the borders of the road. So the peasants 
had not Hed to us : the Cossacks had really intended to 
cut off the retreat of the column of stragglers before they 
could reach the wood. 

* On seeing this we set our horses to a gallop, and, 
without thinking of our resemblance to the Cossacks, we 
stationed ourselves along the road, in order to try and 
gain the entrance of the wood towards which the stragglers 
were rushing. They took us for Cossacks, and ran faster. 
The Cossacks, on their side, taking us for some of them- 
selves, and thinking we were pursuing the French, came a 
dozen strong to support us and follow us into the wood. 
I had a Cossack to my right, my brother to my left ; 
behind me, the remaining Cossacks. Anyone would have 
thought I was their chief. 

' The road was hardly wide enough to allow three 
horses to go abreast. After having trotted forward about 
fifty yards, we saw several of our officers barring the way 
with crossed bayonets, and shouting to those in flight, 
'* Don't mind these dogs ! let them come on !" 

' I seized the opportunity, and, slackening my horse's 
pace, I slashed at the face of the Cossack to my right 
with my sword.'* He took another step and stopped, 
turning his head in my direction ; but, seeing that I was 
preparing to go on, he turned and escaped, bellowing. 
Those who were following did the same, and our horses 
imitated the movement, so that there we were, going in 
our turn after the Cossacks, who ran as if all the devils 
were after them. 

* I caught sight of a road to the right, with a Cossack 
in front of us. Seeing us, he slackened speed, stopped, 

* This Cossack, whose face the sergeant cut with his sabre, was the 
one I saw in the wood, and whose face his comrades bandaged, — 

Aiitlior's Note. 

303 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

and spoke to us in a language we did not understand. I 
hit him a violent blow on the head with my sabre, which 
I believe would have severed it had it not been for the 
bearskin cap he wore. Astonished at this manner of 
reply, he made his escape, and being the better horseman, 
was soon out of sight. A quarter of an hour later we had 
reached the other side of the wood. There was the 
Cossack again, who, seeing us, set off at a gallop, and we 
had no desire to follow him. We skirted the wood to its 
extremity. Afterwards we manoeuvred about till evening 
to find the right road, and we got here with much diffi- 
culty. 

* Now,' concluded the sergeant, ' we must rest a little, 
and set off, for at daybreak we may have to be off again.' 

On this we each of us settled down to take a Httle rest, 
while six men of the Kowno garrison, soldiers in good 
condition, voluntarily offered to take a turn at watching at 
the door of the barn. 

We had not been resting an hour, when we heard a 
shout, 'Who goes there?' Directly afterwards a man 
came in and fell down full length. Some of the men rose 
to help him. He was a gunner in the Imperial Guard, 
who had been found at the bivouac I had missed. He 
had more than twenty wounds on his body, lance-thrusts 
and sword-cuts. They asked for linen to bandage him 
with. I hastened to give one of my best shirts. The 
sergeant, one of the two brothers, made him swallow some 
drops of gin ; the old Chasseur gave some lint that he 
drew out of the depths of his bearskin. The wounded 
man was made more comfortable, and settled as well as 
could be. Happily, his wounds were mainly on the back 
and head ; a few on the right arm, but his legs were 
sound. 

I went up to ask him how he was. Almost before look- 

304 



A COSSACK SURPRISE 

ing at me, he exclaimed : ' It is you, sergeant ! You were 
wise not to stay at the house by the wood where you had 
made up your mind to pass the night, for a quarter of an 
hour after your departure more than 400 Cossacks came 
up.* We took up arms to defend ourselves, being then 
about 400 men. Seeing that we were ready to give them 
a reception, they halted ; a detachment was formed, with 
an officer at their head, who advanced, telling us in good 
French to surrender. 

' But a Chasseur of the Guard, named Michaut — the 
old caniiniere's friend — left the ranks, and advancing so 
as to be heard by the Russian officer : " Tell me, you 
lapin, how long have Frenchmen surrendered with arms 
in their hands ? Come on, we are waiting for you !" The 
officer instantly retired. They prepared to charge ; we 
waited for them, and when the}' were about five-and-twenty 
yards off half our men fired. Some of them fell. Then, 
thinking that we all had discharged our weapons, and that 
we should not be able to reload, they advanced again, 
shouting and hurrahing. But they were met by another 
volley, that put the greater number of their men hors de 
combat. At this they took to flight, and we thought we 
were rid of them ; but five minutes later they returned in 
greater numbers, and just at the moment when we were 
retreating to the wood, not having had again time to 
reload, we were overcome by the blows of lance and sword. 
Almost all were killed or wounded. 

' I remained on the ground, wounded, and pretending 
to be dead ; and, finding myself on the edge of a ditch 
bordering the road, I rolled into it. The peasants came 

* The gunner was mistaken as to the number of Cossacks, for I 
learned from one of my friends who was there that they were not more 
than 250, probably those whom the burgomaster spoke of to the two 
brothers.— Authors Note. 

305 X 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

up, and set to work to despoil the dead and wounded, 
accompanied by some Cossacks whose horses had been 
killed. I was lucky enough to escape notice, and when 
they had withdrawn, raising myself with difficulty, I gained 
the wood and crossed it. And, finally, my friends, I am 
so lucky as to have met you. But what is to become of 
me?' 

' We will lead you,' replied the soldiers of the garrison. 
'And I,' said the sergeant brother, 'will lend you my 
horse.' 

In spite of the sleep which overwhelmed me, I began to 
think of setting off, for, not being strong, I took a great 
deal of time to go a very little way. A young soldier 
offered to accompany me, if I wanted to set out at once ; 
I accepted his offer, especially as this young man, who had 
suffered nothing, was strong and would be able to help me. 
And so we took our departure. 

We entered a wood, through which the road lay. Here 
the soldier, who was unarmed, wished to carry my gun ; I 
gave it up to him, as, in my feeble condition, he was better 
able to make use of it than I. After walking I do not 
know how long, supported by my young companion's 
arm (for I often do^ed while marching), we reached the 
extremity of the wood ; it might have been about four 
o'clock in the morning, December i6th. 

We walked on, haphazard, for about another half-hour ; 
very luckily, the moon rose. But with it came a high wind 
and so fine a snow that it cut our faces and prevented our 
seeing before us. 

I suffered greatly from the longing to sleep, and without 
the help of the little soldier, who held me all the time by 
the arm, I should certainly have fallen down sleeping. 
My companion pointed out to me a large group of build- 
ings some way in front. I saw it was a posting-station, 

306 



WILBALEN 

and concluded from that that we had gone about three 
leagues. In a quarter of an hour's time we had reached 
the doors. Entering, I threw myself down near a fire. 
There were several left by the soldiers, almost all of the 
Imperial Guard, who had marched on to Wilbalen. Some 
gunners, also of the Guard, were still there, but getting 
ready to leave. 

I had slept peacefully for about ten minutes, when I felt 
myself shaken by the arm. I tried to resist, but someone 
raised me by my shoulders ; I awoke at last and heard a 
shout coming from an old gunner : ' The Cossacks ! Get up, 
my boy ! Courage a little longer !' 

Eleven Cossacks had come to a standstill, and were 
probably only awaiting our departure to come and take 
our places. ' Come,' said the gunner, ' we must give up the 
position and beat a retreat on Wilbalen. We have only 
another league ; so come, let us be off !' 

We had to take to the road again ; there were six of us 
— four gunners, the little soldier and myself. We left the 
barn. It was December i6th, the fifty-ninth day's march 
since leaving Moscow. The wind was high and the cold 
terrible. All at once, in spite of all that my comrade could 
do to hold me, I sank down, overcome with sleep and 
fatigue. The efforts of my companion and two gunners 
were necessary to get me on my feet, although when there 
I was still asleep. I awoke, however, when a gunner 
rubbed my face with snow. Then he made me swallow 
a little brandy ; that pulled me together a little. 

They each took an arm, and so made me walk much 
faster than I could have done alone. It was in this way 
that I reached Wilbalen. On entering the town, we learned 
that King Murat was in it with all the remnant of the 
Imperial. Guard. 

In spite of the great cold there was plenty of bustle 

307 X— 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

going on in the town on the part of the soldiers, who were 
in hopes of buying bread and brandy from the numerous 
Jews in the place. At the door of each house, too, there 
was a sentinel, and whenever anyone presented himself for 
admission he was answered that some General lodged 
there, or some Colonel, or that there was no more room. 
We were told by others to go and ' look for our own 
regiment.' The gunners found some comrades of their 
ovv^n, and went off with them. I was beginning to be in 
despair, when I was told by a peasant that in the first 
street to the left there were only a few people. We went 
there, but always found a sentinel at every door, and every- 
where the same response. I saw for myself that inside the 
houses the men were heaped up on one another. However, 
we could not remain very long in the street without dying 
of cold. 

It would be difficult to express how much I suffered on 
this day from cold, but still more from disappointment at 
seeing myself repulsed everywhere, and that, too, by com- 
rades. 

At last I spoke to a Grenadier, who told me there were 
people everywhere, but ill-will and selfishness as well, and 
that no attention must be paid to the houses being 
sentinelled ; that one must go in, ' For I see,' he con- 
tinued, ' that you are in a bad way.' 

Making a sign to my comrade to follow me, I turned to 
enter the first house I came to. An old fellow barred the 
way with his musket, saying that it was the Colonel's 
quarters, and that there was no more room. I answered 
that, even were it the Emperor's lodging, there would 
have to be room for two, and that I should go in. Just 
then I caught sight of another Grenadier busy fastening 
a pair of officer's epaulettes on to the shoulders of his 
overcoat. To my great surprise I recognised Picart, my 



I FIND PICART AGAIN 

old companion, whom I had not seen since leaving Wilna, 
on December 6th. Instantly I said : 

' Tell Colonel Picart that Sergeant Bourgogne is asking 
him for room.' 

' You are mistaken,' he answered. 

But without listening to him, I forced my way past the 
sentry ; the other followed me, and we entered. 

No sooner did Picart recognise me, than he threw his 
big epaulettes on to the straw, exclaiming : 

'Jour de Dieu ! it is nion pays, my sergeant! How 
is it that you are alone ? Have you been in the rear- 
guard ?' 

Without replying, I let myself fall upon the straw, 
exhausted with fatigue, want of sleep, and hunger, and 
suffocated as well with the heat of a great stove. Picart 
ran to his knapsack, brought out a bottle of brandy, and 
made me swallow a few drops, which brought me round a 
little. Then I begged him to let me rest. It might have 
been about eight o'clock in the morning : it was two in 
the afternoon when I awoke. 

Picart placed between my knees a little earthen plate of 
soup with rice, which I ate with pleasure, looking mean- 
while all round me, trying to collect my thoughts. 
Finally everything became clear to me, so that I could 
remember all that had happened during the last twenty- 
four hours. 

Picart broke into my reflections to tell me all that had 
happened to him since we were separated at Wilna : 

' After having driven away the Russians who showed 
themselves on the heights of Wilna, we were brought back 
to the square ; from there we were led to the suburb on 
the Kowno road, to act as guard to King Murat, who had 
just left the town. There I looked round for you, think- 
ing you had followed, and was astonished not to see you. 

3°9 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

At midnight we had to set out for Kowno, to accompany 
Murat and Prince Eugene, who also was lodged in the 
suburb. But on reaching the foot of the mountain we 
found it impossible to cross it on account of the quantity 
of snow a»d the number of carriages and waggons along 
the road. 

' When the day had broken, the King and Prince, by 
making a sweep around the mountain, succeeded in con- 
tinuing on their way ; but I and many others, having no 
horses, began to climb the road again. Lucky for us, for 
we had the opportunity to monter a la roue and make a 
few five-franc pieces ... at your service, you hear, mon 
pays,' 

Picart gave me the details of his journey up to the 
moment when chance had brought about our meeting. 
I then told him that every time I met him it gave me the 
same pleasure, but that this time I was especially pleased 
at finding him a Colonel. He began to laugh, telling me 
it was a ruse de guerre, which he had played to get a good 
lodging. He had appointed himself Colonel the day 
before, and was recognised as such by those about him, 
who showed him all respect. 

Picart told me that at three o'clock a review was to be 
held by Murat, when orders would be given, telling the 
remnants of the different corps the places at which they 
were to meet. I decided to go, so as to meet my com- 
rades there. Picart shaved me with a blunt razor that 
we had found in the kit of the Cossack killed on Novem- 
ber 23rd. It was my first shave since leaving Moscow, and 
although he ground the razor on his scabbard, and then 
passed it over his hand to give it an edge, he none the 
less rasped my face. 

At the appointed hour we left our lodging to repair to 
the rendezvous. The muster was to take place in a large 

310 



A PARADE 

street. Soldiers of all ranks and regiments came. Several 
of the veterans of the Guard, to draw attention to them- 
selves, had dressed themselves as if for grand parade : to 
see them one would have thought they had come from 
Paris, rather than from Moscow. At the rendezvous I had 
the luck to meet all those with whom I had been on the 
preceding day, as well as a good many others whom I 
had not seen since leaving Wilna ; but our numbers had 
diminished. Grangier said to me : 

* I hope you will not leave us again ; you must come to 
our quarters, and as we are allowed to make use of sledges 
or carts to travel in, we will try to find one.' 

We stopped in the street a long time waiting for King 
Murat. Meanwhile there were many surprises at meeting 
friends, in finding those living whom one had long 
thought dead. I had the pleasure of meeting Sergeant 
Humblot, with whom I had been travelling the evening 
before, and from whom I had been separated in the wood 
at the time of the Cossack attack. I learned also that the 
cantinieres, Marie and Mother Gateau, had got into good 
quarters. 

As Murat did not come, the names of those men unable 
to walk were taken, these to be despatched the next day 
at six o'clock in the morning on sledges furnished by 
the authorities. We could not find one for ourselves, 
however, and had to comfort ourselves by preparing to 
pass a good night, so as to be fit to march the following 
day. 

Picart had said that he wanted to speak to me before 
we separated. Hardly was the order for departure given, 
when I felt a smart tap on my shoulder. I turned and 
saw Picart. He made a sign to me, and Grangier also, 
to follow him, and when we had moved away a little, he 
said '. 

3" 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

* You are going to do me the kindness of accepting a 
good pull of white wine — Rhine wine.' 

' Is it possible ?' I exclaimed. 

For only answer he said : ' Follow me.' 

He then told us that the evening before he had made 
the acquaintance of a Jew with the idea of selling him 
things he wanted to dispose of — his Colonel's epaulettes, 
for instance — and as he had been often taken for a Jew, 
he passed himself off as one, saying that his mother was 
the daughter of the Rabbi at Strasbourg, and that he was 
called Salomon. The Jew was delighted at the hope of 
making a good bargain, and had pointed out to him his 
house, assuring him that he would find some good Rhine 
wine there. 

We went to the back of the synagogue. To one side 
was a little house, where Picart stopped. He looked all 
round to see if anyone was there ; then, pinching his nose, 
he called out in a nasal voice, ' Jacob ! Jacob !' 

At a barred opening we saw a figure appear in a long 
fur cap and adorned with a dirty beard. Recognising 
Picart, he said to him in German : * Ah, my dear Salomon, 
it is you. I will open the door.' 

We entered a very warm room, stinking and disgusting. 
As soon as we were seated on a bench around the stove, 
we saw three other Jews, who, Jacob said, constituted 
his family. 

Picart, who knew how to go to work with his pretended 
co-religionists, began by opening his knapsack and drawing 
out, to begin with, a pair of epaulettes — not a Colonel's, 
but a Field-Marshal's — and a parcel of lace stripes, the 
whole of it new, picked up on the Wilna mountain out of 
the deserted waggons. 

There were also some silver covers that had come from 
Moscow. The Jews opened their eyes wide. Picart now 

qi2 



JEWS AND BARGAINS 

asked for wine and bread. Some excellent Rhine wine 
was brought. The bread was not exactly of the same 
quality, but just then it was better than one could have 
hoped for. 

While we were drinking, the Jews were inspecting the 
articles spread out upon the bench. Jacob asked Picart 
how much he wanted for all that. 

* Name it yourself,' answered Picart. 

The Jew mentioned a price very far from what Picart 
wanted. 

He said : ' No.' 

Jacob went a little higher. 

This time Picart, on whom the wine was beginning to 
take effect, looked at the Jew sneeringly, and answered 
him by laying a finger on the side of his nose, and 
humming the Rabbi's chant in the synagogue on the 
Sabbath. 

The four Jews began to rock like Chinamen, and chant 
verses. Grangier looked at Picart, thinking he was tipsy, 
and I, in spite of my sufferings, was almost dying of 
laughter. At last Picart stopped singing to pour us out 
some drink. Meanwhile the Jews talked together about 
the price of the articles. Jacob offered a still higher price ; 
but it was not yet as much as Picart wanted, so he recom- 
menced his chant, till finally a bargain was concluded, on 
condition that he received gold. Jacob paid Picart in 
Prussian gold pieces. He was probably satisfied with his 
bargain, for he gave us nuts and onions. The wine had 
gone to our heads, for when Picart received his money we 
began to ' perform the Sabbath ' like him. 

This charivari would have gone on a long time if there 
hadn't been a knocking at the door made by the butt-ends 
of muskets. Jacob looked through the grating and saw 
several soldiers, who told him they were billeted on him, 

3n 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

and that if he didn't open at once the door would be 
beaten in. He opened directly. We made up our mind 
to retire, and I said good-bye to Picart, with a promise to 
meet again at Elbing, the place to which we were under 
orders to march. 

On reaching our lodging we had some rice bouillon ; 
then I attended to my feet and shoes and stockings, and, 
as we were in a warm room and on fresh straw, I soon fell 
asleep. 

The next day — the 17th — by five o'clock in the morning 
the town looked deserted. Men who had not been under 
a roof for two months, and who now slept warmly, were 
in no hurry to leave their quarters. Two or three 
drummers, still remaining among those belonging to the 
Guard, beat the grenadiere for us, and the carahiniere for 
the infantry. When in the street, we noticed that it was 
less cold than on the preceding evening. A sledge drove 
up, drawn by two horses, and stopped. It was driven 
by two Jews, and laden with groceries. I proposed that 
they should drive us — for payment, of course — as far as 
Darkehmen, our day's destination, or that we should seize 
the sledge if they refused. 

At first, under one pretext or another, they made a good 
many difficulties. We offered half the price down, the 
other half on our arrival. The Jews then agreed. The 
price was fixed at forty francs, we paying them the half 
at once ; but as they reckoned the five-franc pieces at the 
value of only a thaler each (worth no more than four), 
that cost us an additional ten francs. We made no diffi- 
culty, however, and to win their confidence we foolishly 
let them see we had a great deal of money. A sergeant- 
major named Pierson showed them several pieces of silver 
plate he had. On this they began to speak in Hebrew, 
so that we could not understand what they were saying. 

314 



THE SLEDGE AND THE JEWS 

There were five of us — Leboude, Grangier, Pierson, 
Oudict, and myself. The sledge was unloaded, the horses 
rested, and we prepared to start. We placed our muskets 
in the bottom of the sledge, our knapsacks upon them, 
and off we went. It was past six o'clock ; the entire 
remnant of the army was already in motion, but without 
order or organization, so that we could hardly get out of 
the town. Those who had not the strength to walk tried 
to seize the sledges. 

Our drivers made us understand that they were going to 
take us round a road to the left, where there was not a 
soul to be seen, and that in less than an hour we should 
have rejomed the highway and overtaken the head of the 
column. We ought to have inquired wh}^ other sledge- 
drivers, who ought to have known of the road, did not 
take it, as it was such a good one ; but this we did not 
think of. After we had been travelling at a fast trot a 
good quarter of an hour, I saw that the way we were 
following was turning imperceptibly towards the left, 
separating us from the road the army was following, and 
that the ground over which we were gliding, and which they 
made us believe was a road, was nothing but an embank- 
ment between a canal on our right and a ditch on our left. 
I wanted to point this out to my comrades, so I shouted 
as loud as I could several times, ' Halt ! Stop !' 

Grangier asked me what I wanted. 

I redoubled my cries : ' They are tricking us ! We are 
with rascals !' 

Then Pierson, who was on the front seat, carrying a 
silver urn that he had brought from Moscow, and which 
he continually made use of for brewing tea, began to shout 
' Halt !' in his turn. 

The rascal Jews jumped down from the bundle of hay 
on which they were seated, and, still going on, but not so 

31 5 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

rapidly, they took the horses by the bridle, turned the 
sledge, and upset us from the top to the bottom of the 
bank into the ditch. Happily for me, I was sitting at the 
back, with my legs hanging over the side of the sledge, so 
I had been able to see their intention, and letting myself 
slip down, I avoided the fall ; but my comrades rolled to 
the bottom, more than twenty-five feet, and came down, 
bruised all over, on the ice. As their feet and hands were 
frozen, they shouted loudly. These cries changed into 
cries of rage against the Jews, who, keeping their hold 
upon the horses' bridles, had prevented the sleigh, although 
overturned, from rolling to the bottom, and had by now 
already dragged it to the edge of the bank. They were 
preparing to escape with our baggage ; but I drew my 
sword, and gave one of the Jews a cut on his head. He 
had to thank his fur cap that his head wasn't split in two. 
I struck him a second blow, which he parried with his left 
hand covered with sheepskin. They would have escaped 
us, but Pierson came up to help me, while the others, still 
at the bottom of the embankment — which they had not 
the strength to climb — were swearing and shouting to us 
to kill the Jews. The one whom I had struck escaped by 
crossing the canal ; the other, who was holding the horses, 
asked for mercy, saying it was his comrade's fault. Pierson, 
however, gave him a few blows with the flat of his sword, 
while he entreated pardon, calling us ' General ' and 
' Colonel.' 

Pierson, taking the horse's bridle, ordered the Jew to 
go down and help our comrades to climb out. He hastened 
to obey, and was rewarded by blows of the fist very forcibly 
applied. When they were all up again, Leboude announced 
that we had acquired a right to the sledge and horses, as 
these two rascals had attempted to kill us in order to 
make off with our possessions. 

316 



REJOINING THE ARMY 

We ordered the Jew to drive us at a gallop, and by the 
shortest way, to where we might rejoin the army, but we 
had to go back the whole way we had come. 

When we got near the town, the Jew wanted to go 
there under pretext of fetching something from his house ; 
no doubt it was to give us up to the Cossacks, who were 
now filling the town. We gave him a taste of sword-point 
in his back, and threatened to kill him if he took another 
step in the direction of the town. Accordingly, he hastened 
to turn to the right, the road the army had taken ; we 
caught sight of the last stragglers a long distance ahead. 
We got up with them a quarter of an hour later, and 
then, rapidly descending a hill, left them behind. 

I was at the back of the sledge ; the pole of one of the 
sledges, descending, caught me on the right side, and 
threw me six feet out on the snow. I lay unconscious. 
A quarter-master belonging to the Mamelukes, who knew 
me, hurried to lift me up and seat me upon the snow.* 
My comrades came running up, too ; they imagined the 
pole had wounded me, but my clothes, fortunately, had 
deadened the blow. Also, as luck would have it, the edge 
of the pole was covered with sheepskin. 

I was lifted up and placed again upon the sledge, and, 
except for some sickness, I was no worse for the accident. 

It might have been about nine o'clock when we arrived 
at a large village ; a great many men were already there. 
We turned into a house to warm ourselves ; we left our 
sledge at the door, after having taken the precaution to 
unload our baggage and make the Jew come in with us, 
for fear that he might make off with our conveyance. 

* This Mameluke was named Angelis, and we knew each other in 
Spain. He was one of the Mamelukes whom the Emperor had 
brought from Egypt ; only a few of this fine body escaped the fatalities 
of this campaign. — A^ithor's Note. 

317 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

The soldiers who were warming themselves told us that 
herrings and gin were on sale in the village. As the others 
had been very kind to me, and as they all, except myself, 
had frozen feet, I undertook to go for them, and on 
leaving I recommended them to keep their eyes upon 
the sledge, 

' Don't bother about that,' said Pierson ; ' I'll answer 
for it.' 

I went off with our Jew as guide and interpreter. He 
led me to the house of one of his friends, where I found 
some herrings, some gin, and some poor rye-cakes. While 
I was warming myself over a glass of gin, I noticed my guide 
had disappeared with another Jew, with whom he had been 
talking a moment before. Seeing that he did not come 
back, I returned to rejoin my friends with the provisions; 
but on nearing the house I saw that the sledge was gone. 
My comrades, calmly warming themselves, asked me for 
the provisions. I asked them for the sledge. They 
looked into the street ; the sledge was gone ! Without 
saying a word, I threw the provisions down, and, feeling 
miserable, lay on the straw beside the stove. Half an 
hour afterwards there was a call to arms, and we were 
told that two short leagues away there were sledges for 
everybody, so that Gumbinnen should be reached the 
same day. 

On reaching the place, we found a great number of 
sledges, and directly afterwards they made us set off. 
During the journey I felt ill ; the movement of the sledge 
made me sea-sick. I chose at last to march for a while 
on foot, but I nearly perished with the cold, which had 
now become almost unbearable. My comrades happily 
saw my wretched condition, had the sledge stopped, and 
came to fetch me. I couldn't go a step further. We 
reached Gumbinnen none too soon. We all five of us 

318 



PIERSON DRIVES 

received a billet, and had a very warm room and some 
straw. 

The first thing we did after we were installed was to 
inquire if anything to eat and drink was to be had for 
money. The villager, who looked like a good fellow, 
said he would do his best to get us what we wanted ; an 
hour later he brought us soup, roast goose and potatoes, 
beer and gin. We devoured it with our eyes, but, un- 
happily, the goose was so tough that we could eat only 
very little of it, and that little nearly choked us ; we were 
reduced to potatoes. 

With Sergeant-Major Oudict, I went into the town to 
see if we could find anything to buy. Chance led us to 
a house where Oudict met a Surgeon-Major, a fellow- 
countryman. He was quartered with the remnant of the 
regiment, two officers, and three soldiers. They were in 
a pitiable condition ; they had almost all lost their toes 
and hands. While we were here a man offered to sell us a 
horse and sledge, which we eagerly purchased for the sum 
of eighty francs. 

The next day, the i8th, after having made an attempt 
to eat our goose, which was no more tender than the day 
before, we mounted our sledge and set out for Wehlau, 
where we were to sleep ; but we were hardly outside the 
town before Pierson, who drove the sledge, and understood 
nothing about it, turned a somersault with it, broke the 
shaft, and threw us out upon the snow. We were near a 
house, which we entered to get the sledge mended ; while 
the peasant was busy at the job, we warmed ourselves, 
but when we came to set out again our weapons were 
gone. The Prussians had taken our muskets, piled up 
against the door. We shouted, we swore : ' We will have 
our arms, or we will set fire to the house !' But the peasant 
swore in his turn that he had seen nothing of them. We 

319 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

had to make up our minds to leave without them. Happily, 
after about an hour's progress, we met a waggon which 
had left Gumbinnen that morning with a consignment of 
muskets for the Imperial Guard, so we were able to get 
others. Finally, at three o'clock we reached Wehlau. 

We saw more than 2,000 soldiers gathered together 
near the Hotel de Ville, waiting for their billets. A big 
Prussian rascal came up to us, and told us, jf we cared 
about it, we could lodge with him for a small sum ; he 
had a well-warmed room, straw for us to sleep on, and a 
stable for our horse. We accepted eagerly. On reaching 
his house, he put the horse in the stable, and made us 
mount to the second floor, and there showed us a room 
only passably clean ; it was the same with the straw, but 
it was warm — that was the essential. 

A woman appeared, nearly six feet high, with a veritable 
Cossack face. She told us that she was the mistress of 
the house, and that if we needed anything we had only to 
give her some money, and she would go and fetch it. This 
was just what we wanted, for we had none of us any 
incHnation to go out. I gave her five francs to bring us 
some bread, meat, and beer. She brought us all three 
shortly afterwards. Soup was made, and after having 
eaten, and seen that the horse was cared for, we slept till 
the following morning. 

Before leaving, we gave our hostess a five-franc piece 
for the night, but she told us that was not enough. We 
gave her a second ; but still this did not meet her reckon- 
ing. She required five francs a head for each man, and 
one more for the horse. 

At that I told her that she was a cheat, and that 
she should have no more. She passed her hand over my 
face, and answered : ' Poor little Frenchman ! Six months 
ago that was all very well — you were the stronger; but 

320 



A SHREW 

to-day things are different. You are going to give me 
what I ask, or I will keep my husband from putting 
the horse into the sledge, and have you taken by the 
Cossacks!' For reply, I told her that I snapped my 
fingers at the Cossacks and at the Prussians. * Oh yes,' 
she answered ; ' but you wouldn't say so if you knew they 
were close at hand.' On this, seeing the whole wicked- 
ness of the woman, I caught her by the neck to strangle 
her, but she was the stronger ; she threw me down upon 
the straw, and tried, in her turn, to strangle me. Luckily, 
a kick behind from one of my comrades made her get up. 
Just then the husband came in ; but he received a great 
blow from his dear wife's fist. She was like a fury, telling 
him he was no more than a great coward, and that if he did 
not instantly go and fetch the neighbours and the Cossacks 
she would tear his eyes out. As we were five against two, 
we prevented them leaving the house, and forced them to 
harness the horse to the sledge. But we had to give what 
this female scoundrel demanded ; there was no time for 
bargaining, the Cossacks being close by. Before leaving, 
I told this she-devil that, should I come back, I would make 
her return the money we had given her, with interest. 
She replied to this by spitting in my face, I wanted to 
strike her with the butt-end of my musket, but my com- 
rades kept me back. 

We mounted the sledge to get away as quickly as pos- 
sible. 

This day, December igth, we were to sleep at Inster- 
bourg, where we arrived by nightfall. We were quartered 
with some worthy people. 

The next day, the 20th, fell on a Sunday. We left at 
daylight, in order to sleep at Eylau. There we repaired 
at once to the town-hall, and without any difficulty 
obtained our billets. We were with good people again ; 

321 y 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

we found a fire in the room, and each of us was offered a 
glass of gin. Afterwards our hostess went in search of 
our rations, taking our billet with her, for the inhabitants 
had just received orders to supply us with provisions. 

When we were warmed and had rested a little, we made 
up our minds, while waiting for our soup, to pay a visit to 
the field of battle. We walked over most of it, and saw 
several simple wooden crosses. We noticed one in par- 
ticular, with this inscription : 

' Here rest twenty-nine ofificers of the brave 14th (line regiment), 
who died on the field of honour.'* 

After making some notes on the placing of the troops 
the day of this terrible battle, we entered the town, which 
appeared to us deserted. 

It was Sunday, and on account of the season the in- 
habitants were shut up in their houses, and we were the 
only Frenchmen about, the others having taken another 
direction. 

Returning to our lodging, we stretched ourselves out on 
the straw while waiting for our meal. 

Hardly were we settled down, when a Prussian veteran 
entered to warn us that Cossacks had been seen on a hill 
about a quarter of a league from the town, and that he 
advised us to be off as quickly as possible. As it was only 
too true, we made hasty preparations for departure. Our 
meat, barely half cooked, we packed up in straw. 

Our peasant set off with us to put us in the right road. 
On reaching it, he pointed the Cossacks out to us, upon a 
hill. There were more than thirty. The weather was 
foggy ; the snow had not ceased to fall since our departure. 
We had not gone half a league before night overtook us. 

* Besides 590 non-commissioned officers and soldiers. — Author's 
Note 



EYLAU 

We met two peasants and asked them if there was still 
far to go before we got to a village. They told us a 
large wood would have to be crossed first ; but that we 
should find to the right, about twenty-five paces from the 
road, an inn, owned by a forest-keeper, and that we might 
be able to lodge there. After about half an hour's pro- 
gress, we reached the house indicated. It was nine 
o'clock ; we had gone four leagues. 

Before the door was opened we were asked who we were 
and what we wanted. We answered that we were French- 
men, soldiers of the Imperial Guard, and that we wanted, 
for payment, lodging, food, and drink. The door was 
instantly opened, and we were made welcome. We first 
put up our horses in the stable. Then we were shown 
into a large room, where we saw three Chasseurs of the 
Guard laid on the straw. They had arrived during the 
day, but in worse plight than ours, for they had lost 
their horses, and, although their feet were frozen, they 
were thus forced to go on foot. Something was brought 
us to eat, and then we lay down and slept like the 
blessed. 

On waking, we were surprised not to see the Chasseurs, 
but we learned from the master of the house that about an 
hour previously a Jew, travelling with a sledge, had offered 
to drive them three leagues for two francs, and that they 
had eagerly accepted. We heard this news with delight. 
After paying five francs — all that was asked — for our horse 
and ourselves, we set out, our host advising us to follov/ 
the track of the sledge in front of us. 

We had a nine leagues' journey that day, and reached 
Heilsberg, where we were to sleep, by nightfall. 

We first repaired to the burgomaster for our billets ; 
we were lucky enough to find ourselves all told off to 
the same house, where we were fairly well received. Six 

333 Y— 3 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

Chasseurs of the Guard were there already. They gave 
us soup, meat, a quantity of good potatoes, and beer ; we 
asked for wine, which of course we paid for. They pro- 
cured us some at a thaler (four francs) a bottle, which was 
good and not dear. Before lying down to sleep on some 
good straw, we asked our hostess to have something ready 
for us by five o'clock in the morning, for we had a long 
stretch between us and our next halting-place. 

The next day, December 22nd, we rose very early. A 
servant appeared, bringing us a candle ; we ordered him 
to see to the horse, promising him a pourboire when he 
was ready harnessed to the sledge. Soup was brought 
us — in fact, everything we asked for. So each of us 
flattered our hostess, calling her ' Good woman ! beautiful 
creature!' and giving her little slaps on the back and 
arms. When our meal was over, we prepared to set off; 
the sledge was ready, and we were bidding good-bye to the 
woman, when she suddenly said : 

'This is all very well, gentlemen, but before leaving 
don't forget to pay me.' 

' What ! pay you ! We are billeted on you ! You have 
to feed us !' 

' Yes,' she answered, ' that holds good for yesterday, 
but for what you have had to-day I must have two thalers 
(ten francs).' 

I declared I would not pay ; but when the woman saw 
that we were getting ready to leave without giving her 
any money, she ordered the door to be shut, and a dozen 
great Prussian rascals entered, armed with big sticks the 
thickness of my arm. It was not a case for discussion ; 
we paid and went away. Autre temps, autre mceurs. Now 
we were the weaker. 

The Chasseurs had left while we were breakfasting. 
We had still two days' journey to Elbing, twelve leagues ; 

324 



BY SLEDGE 

and, as we did not wish to tire our horse, we made up our 
minds to put up at three leagues from the town. 

After going about a league, we saw several sledges 
coming on our left, also going towards Elbing. This 
made us think we could not have followed the road 
taken by the remnant of the army, and that, instead of 
going to Eylau, we ought to have taken the direction of 
Friedland. 

A large-sized sledge, drawn by two powerful horses, 
passed close by us. It was going so swiftly that we could 
not distinguish to what regiment the men in it belonged. 
In about half an hour's time we caught sight of a good 
house. It turned out to be a posting-station, and an inn 
also. There were several soldiers of the Guard at the 
door, setting out on sledges that had been procured for 
them. 

We dismounted and entered, asking for wine, as we had 
been just told that there was plenty of it and very good. 
The men who told us seemed to have themselves partaken 
copiously ; they were both in a state of wild gaiety. This 
happened to almost all those who, like ourselves, had 
endured so much misery and privation. The least amount 
of drink went to our heads. One of them asked us if we 
had met the regiment of Dutch Grenadiers who had formed 
a part of the Imperial Guard. 

We said, ' No.' 

' It passed you,' said the Velite, ' and yet you didn't 
see it ? That big sledge that overtook you contained the 
entire Dutch regiment ! There were seven of them !' 

The posting-master told the two soldiers that there was 
a sledge at their disposal, and that he would drive them 
the three leagues to Elbing for fifteen francs. As they 
had a driver, we decided to go with them, and five minutes 
later we were on the way. 

325 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

Grangier and I were unwell and dreadfully sick. This 
was the result of our being unaccustomed to nourishing 
food ; we ought to have taken it quietly, by degrees. We 
resolved to do this in future. On reaching a village, we 
each took a glass of Dantzig gin, and went on again till 
we reached the village where we were to put up. It was 
night ; we presented ourselves at the burgomaster's to get 
our billet, but were brutally refused, and told that the 
only place for us to sleep in was the street. We had 
something to say about this, but the door was shut in 
our faces. We went to several inns where we asked for 
a lodging, offering payment, but everywhere we met with 
the same reception. 

We decided, and the Chasseurs also, that we would 
keep together, that they should make use of our sledge, 
and that, as it was not big enough to hold us all, two 
should each go on foot in turn. 

In this way we meant to try and reach some village 
where we might find the inhabitants more hospitable. At 
about a gunshot off, we caught sight of a house a little 
way back from the road. We made up our mind to force 
a lodging, if they would not take us in with a good will. 
However, the peasant told us that he would lodge us 
with pleasure ; but that if it was known to the villagers, 
he would suffer for having given us shelter. If no one 
had seen us enter, he would risk putting us up. We 
assured him that no one had seen us, that he could take 
us without any fear, and that before we left we would 
give him two thalers. He seemed very pleased, and his 
wife still more so, and we established ourselves round the 
stove. 

While the man was out, putting our horse up in the 
stable, the woman came up to us and told us in a low 
voice, and all the time looking to see if her husband 

326 



FRENCH UNPOPULARITY 

was coming, that the peasants were ill-disposed towards 
the French, for this reason : When the army passed 
through in May, some Chasseurs of the Guard had been 
quartered for a fortnight in the village ; and one of them, 
who stayed at the burgomaster's, was so young and 
handsome that all the women and girls flocked to their 
doors to see him. He was quartermaster. It happened 
one day that the burgomaster caught him kissing and 
embracing his wife, with the result that the lady got a 
thrashing. The quartermaster, in his turn, beat the 
burgomaster. The lady is now in a certain condition, 
and the fault is put down to the quartermaster. We all 
listened, and smiled at the way in which the woman related 
the story. 

' That is not all,' she continued ; ' there are three other 
women in the village in the same condition as the burgo- 
master's wife, and that is why they mean mischief towards 
the French, such handsome fellows as they are.' She had 
scarcely uttered the words before the old soldier had risen, 
caught her round the neck, and kissed her. 

*Take care! here is my husband !' she cried. 

And in he came, telling us that he had fed the horse, 
and would give him something to drink presently; but 
that, if we wanted to oblige him, we would set off before 
daybreak, so that no one might know that he had taken 
us in. 

' I have a sledge,' he said, ' and for a small consideration 
I will drive those of you who have none.' 

The Chasseurs accepted. 

They now served us with milk, soup, and potatoes ; 
afterwards we lay down to sleep fully dressed, with our 
arms loaded. 

The next day, the 23rd, the peasant came to awaken 
us before four in the morning, saying that it was time 

327 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

we set out- We paid the woman, kissed her, and took 
our leave. 

At a second village the inhabitants mobbed us, throwing 
stones and snowballs. We reached one of the suburbs of 
Elbing, and stopped at an inn to warm ourselves, for the 
cold had increased. We had some coffee there, and at 
nine o'clock we entered the town with the rest of the army 
who had arrived, like ourselves, but by other roads. 



328 



CHAPTER XL 

OUR STAY AT ELBING MADAME GENTIL AN UNCLE's HEIR 

JANUARY 1ST, 1813 — PICART AND THE PRUSSIANS FATHER 

ELLIOT — MY WITNESSES. 

Without losing time, we went to the town-hall for our 
billet ; it was crowded with soldiers. 

We noticed several cavalry officers far more wretched 
than we were, for nearly all had lost fingers and toes, 
and others even their noses : it was distressing to see them. 
The magistrates of the town did all they possibly could do 
for their comfort, giving them good lodging, and ordering 
that every care should be taken of them. 

After half an hour's waiting, we were given a billet for 
the five of us, and for our horse ; we hurried off to the 
place at once. 

It was a large tavern, or, rather, a low smoking den. We 
were very ill-received ; they showed us a large corridor 
without fire for our rooms, and some bad straw in it. 
We expostulated, and were told that it was good enough 
for Frenchmen, and that, if that didn't suit us, we could 
go into the street. Indignant at such a reception, we left 
the house, expressing all our contempt to the brute who 
had received us in such a way, and threatening to make 
him give an account of his behaviour to the town magis- 
trates. 

329 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

We decided that we must try to get our billet changed, 
and I was charged with the mission, my comrades waiting 
for me at an inn. 

On reaching the town-hall, I found there were not 
many people there. I addressed myself to the Mayor, 
who spoke French, and told him how brutally we had 
been received. I showed him my right foot, wrapped up 
in a piece of sheepskin, and my right hand, from which the 
first joint of the middle finger was nearly coming off. He 
spoke to the man in charge of the billeting, who then said 
that we could not all be quartered together. ' Here,' he 
said, ' is a billet for four and a horse, and here is another 
which I advise you to keep for yourself. It is at a French- 
man's who has married a woman in the town.' After 
thanking him, I returned in search of my companions. 

On reaching the suburb, we went to the quarters for 
four men and a horse. It was a fisherman's house on the 
border of a canal, in the direction of the port ; we were 
received well enough. When we were settled, I offered 
the billet for one to anyone who would have it, but as no 
one wanted it, I inquired if it was far from the place where 
we were, and found there was only a bridge to cross. 

I thought the house looked very imposing. The first 
person whom I met, as I went in, was the servant, a stout 
German with florid cheeks. I showed her my billet. 
She said there were four soldiers quartered in the house 
already, but at the same time she went in search of the 
lady of the house, who told me the same thing, pointing 
to their room. They were men of our regiment, who, 
like ourselves, had just arrived, but separately. I deter- 
mined to return to the first quarters and rejoin my 
comrades. But the lady, having just read upon the billet 
that I was a non-commissioned officer of the Imperial 
Guard, said : 



OUR STAY AT ELBING 

' Listen, my dear sir : you seem to be in such suffering 
that I do not want to turn you out. Follow me ; I will 
give you a room to yourself, and you shall have a good bed, 
for I see that you have need of rest.' 

1 answered that it was very kind of her to take pity 
on me, but that all I asked was some fire and straw. 

* You shall have all that,' she answered. 

While speaking, she showed me a small room, warm 
and clean, with. a bed in it covered with an eider-down. 
But I begged as a favour that she would give me some 
straw, with some sheets and some warm water to wash 
myself in. . 

All I asked for was brought me, besides a great wooden 
tub to bathe my feet in. I was in want of it, and more 
besides. My head, my face, and my beard had not been 
attended to since December i6th. I begged the servant, 
whose name was Christian, to fetch a barber. He shaved 
me, or, rather, flayed my face, saying that mv skin was 
hardened by the continued cold, but his razors felt like 
saws. 

This operation over, I had my hair cut. After well 
paying the barber, I asked him if he knew of some dealer 
in old clothes, for I wanted some trousers. When he had 
gone, a Jew arrived with some trousers in a bag. They 
were there in all colours — gray and blue — but all either 
too small, too big, or not clean. The son of Israel, seeing 
he had nothing to fit me, told me that he would go and 
come back with something that would please me. He 
soon returned with some trousers d la Cosaque, dark red 
in colour, and of fine cloth. They were a trooper's 
trousers, probably belonging to an aide-de-camp of King 
Murat. I tried them on, and, foreseeing they would be 
very warm, I kept them. The mark was still there of a 
wide stripe down each side, which the Jew had taken the 

331 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

precaution of removing. In exchange I gave him the 
doctor's Httle case mounted in silver that I had taken 
from the Cossack on November 23rd. He demanded five 
francs besides, which I paid. 

Three fine shirts belonging to the Commissary were 
still left, so I made up my mind to change my linen ; but, 
looking myself over, I saw to do it properly I ought to 
have a bath, for there were traces of vermin still all over 
my body. I inquired of the servant if there were any 
baths near, but, not able to understand me, she went in 
search of her mistress, who came immediately. It was 
then I noticed that my hostess was a young and beautiful 
woman. For the moment, however, my observations 
went no further, for in my present position I was too 
much occupied with myself. She asked me what I 
wanted, and I said that I wanted a bath, and begged her 
to be so good as to tell me where I could get one. She 
answered that there were public baths, but that they were 
too far away ; that, if I liked, one could be got ready for 
me in the house. She had hot water and a large tub ; if 
I could content myself with that, it should be prepared 
for me. As may be well imagined, I accepted with joy, 
and shortly after the servant made signs to me to follow 
her. So, taking my knapsack and my red trousers, I 
went into a sort of wash-house, where I found everything 
necessary, even soap. 

I cannot express the comfort I felt in that bath. I 
stayed in it so long that the servant came to see if any- 
thing had happened to me. As she came in she saw that 
I was at a loss in washing my back. Without asking my 
permission, she went out and brought a large piece of red 
flannel, and coming up to the tub, she put her left hand 
on my neck, and with the other she rubbed me on the 
back and arms and chest. As may be imagined, I 



MADAME GENTIL 

allowed her to do it. She asked me if it was doing me 
good, so I said yes. On that she redoubled her zeal, 
until I was tired. Finally, after having thoroughly curry- 
combed, scrubbed, and dried me, she ran off laughing, 
without giving me time to thank her. 

I put on one of the War Commissary's shirts, then 
afterwards the trousers a la Cossack, and, bare-footed, 
went back to the bedroom and dropped on the bed. 
It was not too soon, for I felt very weak and lost con- 
sciousness. I do not know how long I remained in this 
condition, but when I opened my eyes I saw beside me 
the lady of the house, and also the servant and two of 
the soldiers who were billeted there, and who heard that 
something serious was amiss with me ; but it was only 
weakness caused by the bath, and also by the privations 
and fatigue I had undergone. 

Madame Gentil — this was the lady's name — fed me 
with some broth, supporting my head on her left arm. I 
made no resistance, as it was so long since I had been 
petted. Madame Gentil was remarkably beautiful : her 
figure was slender and supple, her eyes were black, and her 
pink and white colouring was that of a beautiful Northern 
woman. She was four - and - twenty. I remembered 
having been told that she was married to a Frenchman, 
and she said it was so. 

* In 1807 a convoy of wounded Frenchmen had arrived 
at Elbing from the neighbourhood of Dantzig, and as the 
hospital was filled with the sick, the new-comers were 
billeted among the inhabitants. A Hussar, wounded by a 
musket-ball in the breast, was sent to us. He also had a 
sword-cut in the left arm. My mother and I nursed him, 
and he soon got well.' 

* And so,' I said, ' he married you in gratitude for )^our 
care.' 

333 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

Laughing, she answered that it was the case. I told 
her that I should certainly have done the same, as she 
was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. Madame 
Geniil began to laugh, to blush, and to talk, and she was 
talking still when I fell asleep, and did not awake till nine 
o'clock the next morning. 

For some little time I could not remember where I was. 
The servant entered, accompanied by Madame Gentil, 
who was bringing me coffee, tea and rolls. It was a long 
time indeed since I had had such a feast ! I forgot the 
past ; I thought only of the present and Madame Gentil. 
I even forgot my comrades. 

Madame Gentil looked at me attentively ; then, passing 
her hand over my face, asked me what was the matter. 
I replied there was nothing wrong. 

But there is,' she said ; ' your face is swollen.' 

Then she told me that a non-commissioned officer of 
the Imperial Guard had come the preceding afternoon to 
inquire if she had not a non-commissioned officer lodging 
with her. She had said yes, there was one, and had 
shown him my room ; but he had gone away again, saying 
I was not the man he was looking for. 

While Madame Gentil was relating this, my friend 
Grangier came in, but was going out again, saying : 

' I beg your pardon, but ever since yesterday I have 
been looking for one of my comrades, and can't find him. 
And yet this is certainly the street and the number of the 
house marked upon his billet.' 

I said : * It's I you are looking for, isn't it ?' 

Grangier then burst out laughing. He hadn't recog- 
nised me. This was not surprising. I had no queue, my 
face was swollen, I was as white as a swan, in consequence 
of my bath, or, rather, of the way the servant had curry- 
combed me ; I was wearing fine white linen, my head well 

334 



A PLEASANT CHANGE 

brushed, my hair curled. He told me that he had called 
the day before, but seeing a pair of red trousers over a 
chair, he had gone away convinced he had made some 
mistake. He had just been informed, he said, that there 
was to be a muster of the remnant of the Guards at three 
o'clock, and that everyone must do his utmost to appear. 
He would come back for me. 

At two o'clock he came to fetch me, as he had promised, 
accompanied by' my other comrades, who on seeing me 
began to laugh so much that their poor lips bled, cracked 
as they were with frost. 

I had a pleasant surprise ready for them, in the 
shape of some old Rhine wine, and some little cakes 
Madame Gentil had had the kindness to get for me. She 
was most thoughtful, and anticipated everything that 
could give me pleasure. I inquired about her husband, 
adding that, as he was a Frenchman, it would give me 
great pleasure to meet him and drink some wine with 
him. She said he had been away for some days. He 
had gone with her father to the Baltic, where they both 
did business in fruit, which they exported to St. Peters- 
burg.* 

It was December 24th. A little before three o'clock 
we repaired to the great square facing the palace in 
which Murat was lodged. I caught sight of Adjutant- 
Major Roustan, who came to me and asked who I was. 
I began to laugh. 

'Hello!' he said; 'it isn't you, Bourgogne ? Devil 
take me ! No one would ever say you had come from 
Moscow, for you are looking big and fat and fresh. And 
where's your queue ?' 

I told him it had come off. 

* This fruit was despatched from Toumai in Belgium. — Author's 

Note. 

335 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

* Well,' he replied, ' if it has come off, I shall put you 
under arrest when we get to Paris, till it has grown again.' 

There were very few present at this first muster, but we 
were pleased to meet again, for since December 17th, at 
Wilbalen, we had hardly seen each other at all. Everyone 
had gone his own way, and taken a different route. 

The following days passed in the same way — a muster 
each day. On the fourth after our arrival we heard of the 
death of one of the superior officers of the Young Guard. 
He had died of grief at the tragic end of a Russian family 
of French origin, and dwelling at Moscow, whom he had 
invited to follow him on the retreat. I have already 
related their terrible fate. 

By December 29th I was really better. The swelling 
in my face had disappeared ; my frozen foot was going on 
well, also my hand, and all thanks to the care of Madame 
Gentil, who nursed me like a child. Her husband returned 
from his journey, but only remained at home two days, 
leaving again with goods to rejoin his father-in-law, who 
would forward the things on sledges into Russia. Com- 
munication was opened again with that country since we 
had left. He told me that he had served three years in 
the 3rd Hussars, but that after receiving two severe 
wounds near Dantzig he had obtained his discharge as 
disabled. But he had preferred remaining in this country 
and marrying there, where he had made friends, to 
returning to Champagne - Pouilleuse, his own country, 
where he had no property. 

The next day, December 30th, I went with Grangier to 
pay a visit to my brave Picart, who had had an accident. 
A Grenadier who had been quarteied with him showed me 
the place. 

On reaching it, a woman dressed in black, and with a 
melancholy air, showed us to his room, at the end of a 

336 



AN UNCLE'S HEIR 

long corridor. We saw that the door was half open. 
We stopped to listen to Picart's deep voice singing his 
favourite piece to the tune of ' The Cure de Pomponne ' : 

* Ah ! tu t'en souviendras, la-ri-ra, 
Du depart de Boulogne !' 

Great was our surprise at seeing him with a face as 
white as snow, a mask of skin covering his whole face. 
He told us about his accident, speaking of himself as a 
raw recruit, an old stupid, ' Listen, mon pays,' he said. 
' It was just like the musket-shot in the wood the night of 
November 23rd. I see I am good for nothing. This 
miserable campaign has done for me. See,' he continued, 
' if something horrible doesn't happen to me.' So saying, 
he laid hold of a bottle of gin that was on the table, and 
taking three cups from the chimneypiece, filled them, to 
drink, as he said, to our safe arrival. ' Look here,' he 
said : ' we will spend the day together, and I will invite 
you to dinner.' 

He at once called the woman, who came in weeping. 
I asked Picart what was the matter with her, and he 
replied that an uncle of hers had been buried that morn- 
ing, an old bachelor, a coaster or privateer, very rich, as it 
seemed, and that there were great doings in the house. 
He had been invited, and for that reason he had invited 
us too, as there would be noisettes a croqiier. But on 
second thoughts, he said that it would be much better to 
have the dinner brought to his room than to spend our 
time with a heap of blubbering creatures who were pre- 
tending grief — the usual result of the death of a rich uncle 
who had something to leave. He told the woman he 
should not be able to dine with her, on account of friends 
having come to see him ; and, besides, he was so sensitive 
he should do nothing but weep. So saying, he pretended 

337 z 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

to wipe away a tear. The woman began to cry again, and 
at such a comedy we were obHged to cover our faces with 
our handkerchiefs so as not to burst with laughter. The 
good woman thought that we were all crying, and called 
us first-rate fellows, saying we should be served at once. 
On this she withdrew, and two female servants brought us 
dinner. There were so many things we couldn't have 
eaten them in three days. 

As may be imagined, our dinner was of the gayest; still, 
when we remembered our miseries, the fate of those 
friends whom we had seen perish, and others who had dis- 
appeared, we grew sad and thoughtful. 

Night was coming on, and we were still smoking and 
drinking, when the mistress of the house came in to tell us 
that they were waiting for us to have their coffee. She led 
the way, and after a good many turnings we reached at 
large room, Grangier in front, I second ; Picart had stayed 
behind. On entering, we saw a long table, well lighted 
by several candles. Around it were fourteen women, 
more or less old, and all dressed in black. In front of each 
was a cup, a glass, a long clay pipe and tobacco, for in, 
this country almost all the women smoke, particularly the 
sailors' wives. The remainder of the table was furnished 
with bottles of Rhine wine and Dantzig gin. 

Picart had not yet come in ; we thought he did not 
dare put in an appearance because of his face. But 
suddenly we saw a movement among the women ; they 
all shrieked, and looked towards the door. It was old 
Picart, with his mask of white skin muffled in his cloak 
of the same colour, a cap of black Russian fox on his 
head, and smoking a meerschaum pipe with a long tube, 
which he carried gravely in his right hand ; the cap and 
the pipe belonged to the deceased. Passing down the 
corridor, he had seen them hanging up in the dead man's 

338 



AN UNCLE'S HEIR 

room, and had taken them for a joke. Hence the fright 
of the women, who had taken him for the dead man coming 
to his own wake. They begged Picart to accept the cap 
and pipe, as a reward for the tears he had shed that 
morning, before the mistress of the house. 

The conversation grew livelier and livelier, for all the 
women smoked and drank like troopers. Soon one could 
not make one's self heard. 

Before breaking up a psalm was sung, and a prayer said 
for the repose of the dead man's soul ; it was all sung and 
said with much unction, and we took part silently. 

Afterwards they left us, wishing us good-evening ; it 
was snowing and blowing a furious gale, so we decided to 
sleep at our old comrade's. There was plenty of straw 
and a warm room, and more we did not want. 

The next morning coffee was brought us by a young ser- 
vant. She was accompanied by the mistress of the house, 
who wished us good-day, and asked if there was anything 
else we wanted. We thanked her. She began to chat 
with the servant ; the latter told her she had just been 
assured the Russian army was not more than four days' 
march from the town, and that a Jew, arrived from 
Tilsit, had met Cossacks near Eylau. 

As I spoke enough German to understand part of the 
conversation, I heard the lady exclaim : ' My God ! what 
will become of all these brave young fellows ?' I showed 
my gratitude to the good German for the interest she took 
in us by telling her that, now we had had food and drink, 
we could snap our fingers at all the Russians. 

If the men were hostile, the women were always on our 
side. 

I reminded Picart that the next day was New Year's 
Day, 1813, and that I wished to spend the day at my own 
lodgings. He looked into a glass to see what his face was 

339 z— 2 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

like, then decided that he would come too. As he did not 
know my lodgings, it was arranged that I should meet him 
at eleven o'clock in front of Murat's palace. We now 
thought of getting home, but so great a quantity of snow 
had fallen that we were obliged to hire a sledge. We 
reached our lodgings, I with a splitting headache and a 
little fever, the result of the festivities the evening before. 

My absence had made Madame Gentil uneasy ; her 
servant had waited up till midnight. I told her how sorry 
I was, and made the bad weather my excuse. I said that 
the following day I should have two friends to dinner. 
She replied that she would do all she could to please me, 
which meant that it was to be at her expense. She gave 
me afterwards some grease that she said was very good 
for chilblains, and wished me to use it at once. I obeyed 
her. How good Madame Gentil was ! But all the German 
women were good to us. 

I spent the rest of the day in the house — in bed almost 
the whole time — cared for and comforted by my charming 
hostess. 

When evening came, I began to think what I could give 
her for a present on New Year's Day. I resolved to get 
up early, and see if I could not find something among 
the Jews. Thereupon I went to bed, as I wanted a 
good night's rest, for the party the evening before had 
tired me. 

The next day, January ist, 1813, the ninth after our 
arrival at Elbing, I got up at seven o'clock to go out, but 
first I looked to see how much of my money was left. I 
found that I had 485 francs left, of which more than 
400 francs was in gold, the rest in five-franc pieces. On 
leaving Wilna I had 800 francs. Could I have spent 
315 francs ? The thing was impossible. I must have 
lost some. That was not surprising, but I was still rich 

340 



JANUARY 1ST, 1813 

enough to spend twenty or thirty francs on a present for 
my charming hostess. 

At the very moment when I was opening the door, I 
met the fat servant Christian, who had sciubbed me so 
thoroughly in the bath. She wished me a ' Happy New 
Year,' and as she was the first person I had seen, I kissed 
her and gave her five francs. She went off, saying that 
she would not tejl Madame I had kissed her. 

I turned in the direction of the palace square. I had 
not reached it, when I saw two soldiers belonging to the 
regiment walking slowly and painfully, bowed down under 
the weight of their accoutrements, nearly spent with 
fatigue. 

Seeing me, they came up, and to my great surprise I 
recognised two men of my company, whom I had not seen 
since the passage of the Berezina. They were in such a 
wretched state that I made them follow me to an inn, 
where I ordered hot coffee to warm them. 

They related that on the morning of November 29th, 
a little before the departure of the regiment from the 
banks of the Berezina, they had been ordered on fatigue- 
duty to bury several men belonging to the regiment, who 
had been killed the preceding evening, or who had died 
of exposure. When they had finished they started off, 
thinking they were following the route the regiment had 
taken ; but, unfortunately, they obeyed the direction of 
some Poles, who guided them towards their own country. 
They did not find it out till the following day. 

' The end of it was,' they told me, ' that for a whole 
month we were walking about in an unknown, deserted 
country, always under deep snow. We were unable to 
make ourselves understood, not knowing where we were, 
nor where we were going. Our money was of no use to us, 
and we could only procure such things as milk or dripping 

341 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

at the cost of our clothes, by parting with our " eagle " 
buttons, or some handkerchiefs that we had kept by 
chance. We were not alone in this ; there were many 
others of different regiments going the same way, and like 
ourselves, not knowing where they were going, for the 
Poles we had been following had disappeared, and it is 
only by chance, sergeant, that we have got here, and have 
had the good luck to meet you.' 

I told them how glad I was to see them again ; they 
had been in my company four years. Suddenly one of 
them exclaimed : 

' Why, sergeant, I have something to hand over to you ! 
You remember that when we were leaving Moscow you 
entrusted me with a parcel ? Here it is just as you 
gave it me ; it has never been taken out of my knap- 
sack.' 

The parcel consisted of a military overcoat of fine dark- 
gray cloth that I had had made for me during our stay in 
Moscow by the Russian tailors whose lives I had saved, 
and of another article — an inkstand — that I had taken 
from a table in the Rostopchin Palace, thinking it was of 
silver (that it was not, however). 

The year was beginning well for me. I hoped that it 
would prove the same for this man. I gave him twenty 
francs, and then I made haste to get into my new 
overcoat. 

I now had a second delightful surprise. Putting my 
hands into the pockets of the new coat, I drew out an 
Indian silk handkerchief, and in one of its corners, tightly 
knotted, I found a little cardboard box, containing five 
rings, set with beautiful stones. I thought I had lost this 
box with my knapsack, and now here it was all ready for 
a present for Madame Gentil. The finest one was to be 

for her. 

342 



JANUARY 1ST, 1813 

Telling my two soldiers to wait till roll-call to be re- 
entered in the company and receive a billet, I returned to 
my own lodging. 

On the way I bought a large sugar-cake, which I pre- 
sented to my hostess, with the ring, begging her to keep 
it as a souvenir from Moscow. She asked me how I had 
bought it. I told her that I had paid for it very dearly, 
and that not for a million would I go on a similar search 
for another. 

At eleven o'clock I returned to the square in front of 
the palace. There were already a good many men there ; 
in three days our numbers were almost doubled. One 
would have said all those one believed dead had come to 
life again to wish each other a * Happy New Year.' But it 
was a melancholy sight, for a great number were without 
nose or fingers or toes ; some had suffered all three mis- 
fortunes combined. 

The rumour that the Russians were advancing was con- 
firmed. The order was given that we should hold ourselves 
in readiness, as if on the eve of a battle, and to sleep with 
one eye open, to avoid a surprise ; to keep our arms 
primed and ready, to supply ourselves with new cartridges, 
and to attend the roll-call with all our weapons and 
accoutrements. 

The muster was not yet over, when I felt a tap upon my 
shoulder and a loud laugh in my ears. It was Picart, in 
fine array and without his mask, who threw himself on my 
neck, embraced me, and wished me a ' Happy New Year.' 
On the other side there was Grangier doing the same, and 
putting thirty francs into my hand. My travelling com- 
panions had just sold our sledge and the horse for 150 
francs. This was my share. After a great many questions 
about my new overcoat, we set out to dine at my place, 
as had been arranged. On our arrival we found two other 

343 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

ladies, so there was one for each. Shortly afterwards we 
sat down informally to table. 

It was late enough when our dinner ended, as it had 
begun, very joyously. 

I heard one of the ladies on leaving say to Madame 
Gentil : ' Tarteijie des Franzosen /' She added : ' They 
are always gay and amusing.' 

The next day, at the muster, Picart came to look for 
me and tell me that on returning to his lodging he had 
found the whole family of his hostess gathered together 
and swearing at the defunct uncle. The mistress told 
him that during the day a woman had arrived from Riga, 
accompanied by a little boy of nine or ten, whom she said 
she had had by M. Kennmann, the deceased, and that he 
had acknowledged him as his heir. Everything was to be 
sealed up, and Picart had asked if they were going to seal 
up the cellar. They told him to bring up some bottles 
for his own consuming as a precaution. He answered 
that he would get as many as possible, and thereupon 
had set to work on the job, and had already fetched more 
than forty, which he had hidden under the bundle of straw 
he used as a bolster, and that after the muster he was 
going to empty his knapsack to fill it with bottles. As a 
matter of fact, he arrived an hour later, knapsack on back. 
He told me we must make haste to drink up the wine, as 
everyone in the town was talking of the speedy arrival of 
the Russians. 

During the short time we remained in the town he 
brought me some wine every day. He must have ended 
by emptying the cellar, as he said. But one day — 
January nth — he came to my place early in the morning 
in marching order, and told me that he did not think that 
he should return to sleep at his lodging ; he was holding 
himself in readiness to hear the alarm sounded, and he 

344 



JANUARY 1ST, 1813 

advised me to do the same, and to begin saying farewell 
to Madame Gentil. 

Grangier came in, also in marching order. He arrived 
just in time to breakfast with me, as there was plenty of 
wine. 

It was perhaps eight o'clock in the morning when we 
sat down to table ; at half-past eleven we were still there, 
when Picart, who was just emptying his glass, stopped 
short, and said : * Listen ! I fancy I hear artillery !' 

The noise indeed grew louder, the alarm sounded, the 
men ran to take up their arms. Madame Gentil rushed 
into the room exclaiming : 

* Gentlemen, the Cossacks !' 

* We are just going to make them dance,' said Picart. 
Hurriedly I arranged my things, and directly afterwards 

I was embracing Madame Gentil, while Picart and Gran- 
gier, like proper soldiers, were emptying the last bottle. I 
tossed off a final glass, then rushed into the street behind 
my friends. 

We had not taken thirty steps, when I heard someone 
calling me. I turned, and saw the fat Christian, who was 
making signs to me to stop, saying I had forgotten some- 
thing. Madame Gentil was standing in the passage. As 
soon as she caught sight of me, she cried out : 

' You have forgotten your little kettle.' 

My poor little kettle that I had carried from Wilna, 
that I had bought from the Jew who tried to poison me — 
I had really not given it a thought. I went in to embrace 
this dear woman once more, who had nursed me and 
cared for me as if I had been her brother or her child. I 
told her to keep my kettle as a remembrance of me. 

* You can use it to boil water in for tea, and every time 
you do so you will think of the young sergeant-velite of 
the Guard. Farewell !' 

345 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

I heard the roar of artillery still louder ; again I rushed 
out into the street, this time not to return. 

I caught sight of Grangier waiting impatiently for me 
on a little bridge. We took the shortest road along the 
quay to the place of muster. We had not been walking five 
minutes, when we saw Picart in the middle of the street, 
swearing in a rage, holding a Prussian down with his foot, 
and in front of him four Prussian soldiers commanded by 
a corporal under the orders of a police superintendent. 
The reason was this : several people had thrown snowballs 
at Picart in front of a cafe. He stopped, threatening to 
enter the house and have them arrested, but they took no 
notice ; one of them, coming down into the street and 
advancing behind Picart, rested a billiard-cue on his 
shoulder, and began to cry : ' Hourra ! Cossack !' Picart, 
turning rapidly, gripped hold of him and flung him flat on 
his face in the snow. Then, placing his right foot on his 
back, he fixed his bayonet, and, turning in the direction of 
the cafe, defied all those within. 

The guard was fetched ; Picart had in the meantime 
made his man understand that if he made the least move- 
ment he would be bayoneted. He said the same to those 
who were in the cafe ; no one stirred, and then the guard 
came up with the superintendent of police. 

The guard did not frighten Picart. He was just then 
like a lion holding his prey in his claws, and looking proudly 
at his hunters. He did not see us ; the superintendent 
was trembling with fear. The women said, ' He is 
right ; he was going quietly on his way, and they insulted 
him.' 

Finally a F'rotestant minister, who had seen everything, 
and who spoke French, came forward and explained to 
the superintendent how the whole thing had happened. 
On this they told Picart that he might let the man go, 

.346 



PICART AND THE PRUSSIANS 

that justice would be dealt him. Picart said, ' Get up !' 
He did not require to be told a second time. 

When he had risen, Picart gave him a sound kick behind, 
saying, ' This is justice on my own account.' The man 
made off amid the hootings of all the women present, 
holding his hand to the place where he had been kicked. 

Meanwhile the superintendent was exacting a fine of 
twenty-five francs from all those persons who had insulted 
Picart, as well as from the one who had had the kick. He 
pocketed half of it ' for the King,' he said, ' and to defray 
the expenses of justice.' The other half he presented to 
Picart, who at first refused, but on second thoughts offered 
half of it to the policemen, the other half to the Protestant 
minister, saying, ' If you should ever meet the wife of an 
old soldier, give her that from me.' We had to explain 
to them what Picart meant, for they could not understand 
so much disinterestedness on the part of a soldier. They 
would have liked to say flattering things to him ; even the 
superintendent of police began jabbering compliments. 
We pursued our way in the direction of the palace, 
Grangier making remarks upon the Prussian character, 
Picart singing his refrain : 

' Ah I tu t'en souviendras, la-ri-ra, 
Du depart de Boulogne !' 

We reached the square, and we saw a regiment of 
negroes opposite the palace where Murat was staying. 
It was really comical to see the contrast of their faces 
against the snow-covered square. The officers command- 
ing them were black also. I could not find out what route 
this corps took in the retreat, but I think they crossed the 
Vistula at Marienwerder. 

The artillery had almost ceased firing ; the Russians had 
been driven from the neighbourhood of the town by a 

347 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

body of fresh troops, who had not been on the Russian 
campaign. A httle grape-shot scattered among their 
cavalry had been quite enough for them. 

We were stopped by the service waggons of the different 
corps leaving the town. We were now near Picart's 
quarters, so he exclaimed, ' Halt, friends ! I must say 
adieu to my landlady, and get my white cloak and the 
pipe and cap belonging to the deceased uncle, and there 
are still some bottles of wine under my straw bolster that 
we must empty.' 

We went into the house and straight to his room without 
meeting anyone. Picart then got out five bottles, two of 
wine and three of Dantzig gin. He told us to each put 
one in our knapsacks, an order we obeyed at once. Then 
he called the landlady. 

' Allow me to embrace you,' said Picart, ' and say adieu, 
for we are going.' 

' So I suppose,' she said ; ' and you will be hardly out 
of the town before the dirty Russians will come to take 
your place. What a pity ! But before leaving us you 
must take something. You must not go away like 
this.' 

And she went in search of two bottles of wine, some 
ham and bread, and we sat down to table. 

Presently the noise of artillery was heard quite near. 
The woman cried, ^ Jesus ! Maria /' and we ran out. 

I was a little in front of my two comrades. A few steps 
before me I saw a man I fancied I recognised, who had 
stopped. I went up and found I was not mistaken ; it 
was the oldest man in the regiment, who had sword, 
musket, and cross of honour, and who had disappeared 
since December 24th — Pere Elliot, who had been through 
the Egyptian campaign. He was in a pitiable condition : 
both his feet were frozen and wrapped in bits of sheepskin ; 

348 



FATHER ELLIOT 

his ears, also frozen, were covered with the same ; his 
beard and moustache were bristling with icicles. I looked 
at him, so much surprised I was unable to speak. 

At last I said, * Well, Pere Elliot, and here you are ! 
And where the devil have you come from ? And how you 
are dressed ! You seem to be in terrible suffering.' 

' Ah, my good friend,' said he, * I have been a soldier 
now for twenty years, and I have never wept ; but I am 
shedding tears to-day more from rage than misfortune, for 
I shall be taken by these brutes of Cossacks without being 
able to strike a blow. For nearly four weeks I have been 
going about alone, ever since the passage of the Niemen, 
all across the snow in a savage country, and unable to get 
any news about the army. I had two companions; one 
died a week ago, and the second is very likely dead, too. 
Four days ago I had to leave them in the house of some 
poor Poles, where we had been sleeping. I have travelled 
more than 400 leagues in the snow since leaving Moscow, 
unable to rest, my feet and my hands frozen, and even my 
nose.' 

I saw great tears flowing from the old soldier's eyes. 

Picart and Grangier just then rejoined me. Grangier 
recognised Pere Elliot instantly ; they belonged to the 
same company ; but Picart, although he had known him 
for seventeen years,* could not remember him. 

We entered the nearest house, and were made very 
welcome; it belonged to an old sailor, and these people 
are generally kind. 

Picart made his old comrade in arms take a seat beside 
the fire ; then, drawing one of the two bottles of wine from 
the pocket of his overcoat, he filled a big bumper. 

' Come, my old comrade of the 23rd Brigade, swallow 

* Since the Italian campaigns. — Author's Note. 
349 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

this ! Good ! And now this ! Very good ! And now a 
morsel of bread, and you will feel better.' 

Since leaving Moscow he had not tasted wine, nor eaten 
such good bread, and he seemed to forget his miseries at 
once. The sailor's wife bathed his face with a linen cloth 
soaked in warm water ; this melted the icicles on his beard 
and moustache. 

* And now,' said Picart, 'we'll have a little chat. Do 
you remember when we embarked at Toulon on our way 
to Egypt? . . .' 

Grangier, meanwhile, had been out to see if the march 
had begun again, and now came in to tell us that a convey- 
ance, laden with heavy baggage belonging to Murat, had 
stopped before the door. A fine chance for Pere Elliot. 
He must get into it at once. ' Forward !' cried Picart ; 
and with the help of the sailor we soon had the old sergeant 
perched on the vehicle. 

Picart put the other bottle of wine between his knees, 
and the white mantle over his back to keep him from the 
cold. Shortly afterwards we began to march, and half an 
hour later we were outside Elbing. 

The same day we crossed the Vistula on the ice, and 
marched on, without accident, till four o'clock, when we 
halted at a large town where Marshal Mortier, who was 
in command, decided we should spend the night. 

I have not written my memoirs eith^ out of vanity or 
from a desire to talk about myself. I have merely wished 
to recall the memory of this gigantic campaign, so fatal to 
us and those fellow-soldiers who went through it with me. 
Their ranks, alas ! are thinning day by day. The facts 
I have related appear incredible, sometimes impossible ; 
but no one must imagine I have added anything which is 
not true, or have tried to make my narrative interesting 

350 



MY WITNESSES 

by embellishing it. On the contrary, I must ask my 
readers to believe I have not told all, for I scarcely can 
beheve it myself. I made a note of everything while I 
was prisoner in 1813, and in 1814 on my return from 
captivity, while the impressions of such disasters were 
still fresh in my mind. 

Those who went through this lamentable but glorious 
campaign proved, as the Emperor said, that they must 
have been made of iron to bear so many privations and 
so much misery ; this was surely the very greatest test to 
which men were ever exposed. 

If I have omitted anything, sucn as a date or the name 
of a place, which I think unlikely, I owe it to myself to 
say I have added nothing. 

Several witnesses to what I have written, who were in 
the same regiment with me, and some in the same company, 
are still living. I will quote some in particular : 

M. Cesarisse, Grenadier- Velite, now Field-Marshal in 
the service of the King of Holland, a native of St. Nicolas 
in Brabant. He was Lieutenant in the same company in 
which I was then sergeant. 

Rossi, Quartermaster in the same company, a native 
of Montauban, and whom I had the pleasure of meeting 
again at Brest in 1830. We had not seen each other for 
sixteen years. 

Vachain,* then a Lieutenant in the same battalion, 
now living at Auzin (Nord). I met him again after an 
interval of twenty years. 

Leboude, then Sergeant - Major, now Lieutenant- 
General in Belgium, belonged also to the same battalion. 

Grangier, Sergeant, who came from Puy-de-D6me in 
Auvergne. He was my intimate friend. On more than 
one occasion he saved my life. His constitution was 

* Died at Valenciennes in iZ^b.—Authoi's Note. 
3SI 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

weak, his courage equal to any trial. He died of cholera 
in 1832. 

PiERSON, also Sergeant- Velite, now Captain on the staff 
at Angers.* He was very ugly, but a good fellow, as were 
all the Velites. There never was a face like his ; he was 
so different from everyone else. One need only set eyes 
on him once to remember him. In this connection I 
will relate a fact that bears me out in what I have been 
saying. 

At the beginning of this campaign, when we were at 
Wilna, the capital of Lithuania, Pierson was one day 
mounting guard at the works. It was July 4th, and big 
ovens were being constructed for the baking of bread for 
the army. The Emperor came to see how the work was 
getting on. Pierson thought he would take advantage of 
the occasion to beg for a decoration, and, going up to His 
Majesty, he made his request. ' Very good,' answered the 
Emperor, * after the first battle !' After that came the 
siege of Smolensk, the great battle of the Moskowa, as 
well as several others during the retreat. But during the 
disastrous retreat no opportunity arrived of reminding the 
Emperor of his promise. It was not till March i6th, 1813, 
some days after our return to Paris, at Malmaison, where 
a review was being held — the same day I was made Lieu- 
tenant — that Pierson was able to remind the Emperor of 
the promise he had made him. Seeing him approaching, 
the Emperor asked him what he wanted. ' Sire,' he 
replied, ' I want the cross your Majesty promised me.' 
' True,' answered the Emperor, smiling, ' at the works 
at Wilna!' It was ten months since the promise had 
been given. The man had certainly an unforgettable face, 
but what a memory the Emperor had ! 

* That is to say, in 1835, the date when I was arranging my 
Memoirs. — Author's Note. 

352 



MY WITNESSES 

I will quote some further witnesses : 

M. Peniaux, of Valenciennes, superintendent of the 
Emperor's relays and stages, who saw me almost dying, 
laid upon the snow, on the banks of the Berezina. 

M. Melle, a Dragoon of the Guards, whom I often met 
during the retreat, leading his horse by the bridle, and 
making holes in the ice of the lakes to give him drink. 
He was from Conde, the place I came from. He might 
be called, with truth, one of the best soldiers in the army. 
Before entering the Guard, M. Melle had already gone 
through the Italian campaign. With the same weapons 
and the same horse he went through the campaigns of 
1806 and 1807 in Prussia and Poland, 1808 in Spain, 1809 
in Germany, 1810 and 1811 in Spain, 1812 in Russia, 1813 
in Saxony, and 1814 in France. 

After the departure of the Emperor for the Isle of Elba, 
he remained in the Royal Guard, awaiting his pension, 
and always keeping his horse with him. On the return of 
the Emperor from Elba, he reappeared again in the same 
corps as one of the Imperial Guards at Waterloo. He 
was wounded, and his horse killed — the horse which had 
gone through so many campaigns with his master, and 
had taken part in more than fifteen great battles com- 
manded by the Emperor. 

Had the Emperor remained in France this brave soldier 
would have been worthily rewarded. Although Chevalier 
of the Legion of Honour, he is now in great want. During 
the retreat from Russia he sometimes penetrated alone at 
night into the enemy's camp to get hay or straw for 
Cadet, the name of his horse. He never returned without 
killing one or two Russians, or bringing back what he 
called a witness, viz., a prisoner. 

MoNFORT, trooper, now a retired officer of Cuirassiers 
at Valenciennes. Although from the same country, and 

353 2 A 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

also belonging to the Imperial Guard, I only knew him in 
the army by reputation, by the manner in which he dis- 
tinguished himself in the different combats we had in 
Spain. In Russia, he crossed the Berezina on horseback 
over the blocks of ice. But he left his horse behind. At 
Waterloo, on Mount St. Jean, during a charge against the 
Queen of England's Dragoons,* he killed the Colonel with 
a thrust in the chest, sending him to sup with Pluto. 

Pavart, retired Captain at Valenciennes, belonging 
during the Russian campaign to the infantry of the 
Imperial Guard. All that he relates of their campaign, of 
what happened to him, and of what he saw, is very 
interesting. 

During the retreat, at Krasnoe, we were fighting for 
three days, November 15th, i6th, and 17th, against the 
Russian army of 100,000 men. On the night of the i6th, 
the eve of the battle of the 17th, Pavart, then a corporal, 
was in command of a patrol of six men. Making his 
rounds, he caught sight of another patrol of five men upon 
his right. Imagining — indeed, almost certain — that they 
belonged to us, he said to his men, * Wait for me. I am 
going to speak with the one in command, so that we may 
both move in the same direction, and avoid the Russian 
outposts. The men halted instantly, and he went up to 
the second patrol, who, seeing a man coming alone, no 
doubt believed he was one of them. But Pavart now saw 
they were Russians. It was too late to draw back. He 
advanced resolutely, and, without giving the Russians 
time to reflect, he fell upon them and put three of them 
hors de combat with the bayonet. The others took to flight. 
After this bold stroke he turned to rejoin his men, but 
found them close at hand, running to help him. 

* Queen's Own. 

354 



MY WITNESSES 

Wilkes, non-commissioned officer in a line regiment 
a native of Valenciennes ; taken prisoner on the banks of 
the Berezina ; led in captivity 1,400 leagues from Paris, 
where he was kept three years. 

Captain Vachain, of whom I have spoken above, had 
a very lively discussion while we were in Spain with my 
sergeant-major, which ended in a duel and a sword-cut 
which divided my sergeant-major's face in two from the 
top of his forehead to the bottom of his chin. He did as 
much on various occasions for Austrians, Prussians, 
Spaniards, Russians, and English, against all of whom he 
was fighting for ten years without stopping, for during this 
time he took part in more than twenty great battles com- 
manded by the Emperor Napoleon. 

At the Battle of Esslingen, May 22nd, 1809, Vachain 
was carrying a skin filled with wine, hung at his side. 
One of his friends, a non-commissioned officer like him- 
self, signed to him that he would very much like a drink. 
Vachain called to him to come near, and, stooping to one 
side, he offered him some wine. This took place during 
the action, when bullets and grape were flying on all 
sides. The man had hardly swallowed it, when a brute of 
an Austrian ball carried away his head as well as the 
gourd of wine. 

Two days before they had dined together at Vienna, 
and there they had made each other gifts of what they 
possessed in the way of watch, belt, etc., in case of the 
death of one or the other. But Vachain had no desire to 
put his promise into execution. He drew back and fell 
into rank, thinking himself lucky not to have been struck 
by the same ball, but reflecting that at any moment as 
much might still happen to him, for it was warm work 
just there. I was wounded that same day. 

Besides the old soldiers whom I knew individually, I 

355 



MEMOIRS OF SERGEANT BOURGOGNE 

can quote others who made a glorious and terrible fight 
with Russia: 

MM. Buoy, retired Captain at Valenciennes, and a native 
of that place, Chevalier of the Legion of Honour. 

HouREZ, retired Captain at Valenciennes, and a native, 
Chevalier of the Legion of Honour. 

PiETE, Sub- Lieutenant, Valenciennes. 

Legrand, ex-gunner of Grenadiers of the Imperial 
Guard, Chevalier of the Legion of Honour. 

FoucART, Barrack-Master, wounded and taken prisoner, 
Chevalier of the Legion of Honour. 

IzAMBERT, former non-commissioned officer of the 
Museum Guard, Chevaher of the Legion of Honour. 

Petit, Sub- Lieutenant of the Young Guard. 

Maujard, of the Engineers, retired at Conde (Nord), 
Chevalier of the Legion of Honour. 

BoQUET, of Conde. 

Bourgogne, 

Ex-Grenadier- Vilite of the Imperial Guard, 
Chevalier of the Legion of Honour. 



THE END. 



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